Sasuke's Dream (Coffee) Sidefics
by Rasengan22
Summary: Extra scenes and sidefics for the It Started Over Coffee AU fic, Sasuke's Dream. Everything is post-Dream and ongoing. NaruSasu/SasuNaru
1. Prom

**a/n:** These are sidefics for Sasuke's Dream, which is part of the It Started Over Coffee Universe. When I write one, I'll post it here until y-gal comes back. If you're new to Coffee, this is the suggested order of reading: It Started Over Coffee (main fic), Sidefics I, Seattle, Sasuke's Dream, Sidefics II, Merry Christmas/Happy New Year, NYC, Nezumi. Obviously Dream sidefics should be read after you've read Sasuke's Dream.

* * *

It was close to 10.30, and Sasuke had spent the night in a downtown club, talking with some band mates about music. Incidentally, it was also prom night for his high school, and while Naruto had been incredibly excited to go... Sasuke inevitably declined any invitation. It was a waste of money, going with a date would be awkward, and he'd already put in enough time planning it that the last thing he wanted to do was be around any more streamers, balloons or crap that glittered. He was gay, but he wasn't _that_ gay.

So, as soon as possible (despite nearly a month of Naruto whining), he volunteered to do a show on the same night for an excuse to get out of it. They weren't being paid much - hardly enough to be split amongst the four of them - but it was how he'd prefer to spend his evening. If Naruto couldn't understand that about him, well, Naruto could shut the hell up. Besides, Sasuke wasn't really in the mood to think about Naruto on a date. Of course, he could do what he wanted, and Sasuke even liked the girl (the red-head from homeroom), but the idea of them dancing, making out, or however Naruto chose to spend their time together -

"Sasuke, you ready?" Chōjūrō, their drummer, asked. "You're spacing out. You okay, mate?"

Sasuke leaned forward, picking up his pick from off one of the high-top tables. "Fine," he answered. "Where's Yagura?"

"Dunno. He was at the bar last I saw 'em. Talkin' to some chicks."

Sasuke ran a hand through his hair. "I'll get Yagura. You find Utakata."

"Cool."

"How long do we have?" He asked as he stood up and stretched, his shirt riding up.

"Uh," Chōjūrō checked his watch. "Ten minutes?"

"Great," he muttered. "Why does this always happen?"

"I dunno. It's 'cause you were spacin' out! We're always used to you bein' the one to keep us organized and on schedule."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "You're all older than me. You should be responsible for yourselves."

The drummer grinned and slung an arm around him. "Why should we grow up when we've got you, Sasuke?"

Sasuke shrugged off his arm. "Just find him and keep him away from the coke that's being passed around in the back room. You know how he gets."

"Tch. You're not supposed to know about that. Jirōbō would kill me if he knew we put you anywhere near drugs tonight."

"Well, what Jirōbō doesn't know won't kill him. See you on the stage." He gave a curt wave before shoving his hands in his pockets. It'd be pretty fucking hard to have a show without their singer.

He headed for the bar, trying to distract himself by mentally running through the new punk songs they'd been practicing in shitty garage about an hour's commute from his house. Still, they didn't entirely suck. Their vocalist had charisma (maybe a little _too_ much), and thinking about music was a hell of a lot better than imagining that girl going down on Naruto in the parking lot after prom, which as of 30 minutes ago, should've been over by now.

* * *

They started about 20 minutes later than scheduled, but once they'd set up the equipment, they jumped right into the first song. They did a few covers (The Clash, Sex Pistols, and Buzzcocks) but they also did some original stuff. It wasn't anything amazing, but considering how many women were near the stage, there was more going on than a deep interest in the music. The other two guys were good looking enough, but Yagura was... hot. At least Sasuke thought so, but he was also an arrogant prick. He was a dick to talk to off the stage but he had talent, and once on stage, he transformed into a completely different person.

Sasuke was playing bass tonight, so he was on the right of the stage. Every once in a while, Yagura wandered over to get in his space and, well, _flirt_ with him. It was all an act. Those things happened on stage sometimes when everyone was feeling the vibe. Not that Sasuke ever would've responded otherwise, but, during the second to last song, the older man grabbed the collar of his shirt and dragged him into a kiss. The women (and some of the guys) screamed and waved their arms in the air. Sasuke just shook his head and went back to playing as their singer swaggered over to their lead guitarist.

The lights were always blinding on stage, and seeing out into the audience could be difficult at times. The club was packed. There'd been two bands before them and there was a band that would follow. When they reached the end of their set, the crowd applauded. Sasuke was sweaty and hot. He wiped a hand across his forehead, feeling the rush that came with playing a show in front of an audience. As the lights lowered, he gazed out at the crowd, wanting to gauge their reaction. It was then that he happened to notice a familiar face sitting at one of the high-top tables.

"Idiot," Sasuke muttered even as he tried to suppress a small smile.

It's not like he could rush out to meet him. He had to help disassemble everything, which would take about 15 minutes. He was just leaning the bass against one of the amps when Yagura came up to him and put an arm around his waist.

"I hope that wasn't your first kiss," Yagura said, grinning at him. "Maybe it's somethin' we could add in regularly. I think the girls really like that guy on guy stuff."

"Hardly." Sasuke put a hand to the older boy's chest and pushed him off. "Why don't you try that crap with Utakata?"

"Because," Yagura wagged a finger in his face. "Even if I was into guys, you'd be my type. Not him."

"I hope you don't think that's a compliment," Sasuke replied. "Now if you don't mind. I have a friend waiting, so I'd like to move everything off the stage."

"A friend, eh? Do you have a boyfriend we don't know about? Did you invite him to see you play? I never pegged you as a show off, Uchiha."

"Think what you want. It was a good show. Don't ruin it by running your mouth."

"Yeah, you definitely need to get laid. I have plenty of gay friends. Why don't you let me hook you up?"

"No, thanks," he replied. "I've got standards."

"Do you? Well, make sure to introduce me to your friend. I'd like to see what your _standards_ look like." Yagura left the stage without bothering to help them with any of the equipment.

It was Utakata that walked up to him next, swinging his long, dark hair behind a shoulder. "Is that asshole not going to help?"

"I wouldn't count on it," said Sasuke. "It's fine. We'll move faster without him."

"You're probably right." He put a hand on Sasuke's shoulder. "You were good tonight. I'm impressed."

"...Thanks."

Afterward, the older boy went to help Chōjūrō with the drums while Sasuke was left to disconnect all the wires for the guitars and sound system. The next time he looked out into the audience to find Naruto - the blond was no longer sitting at the table.

* * *

When they finally finished putting everything in the van Jirōbō let them borrow, Sasuke made sure he had all of his belongings before returning inside. He didn't know how Naruto snuck in since it was a 21 and over establishment. Well, for everyone else but him at least. While walking up to the bar, he spotted Naruto on one of the stools, having a rather animated conversation with some big-chested blond woman that must've been at least 23 or 24. Sasuke went up behind his friend and placed a hand on his shoulder. Naruto immediately spun around. He was still in his suit from prom, which is probably why he appeared to be drawing a fair amount of attention from the ladies.

"What are you doing here?" Sasuke asked, trying very hard to hide the fact that he was actually pleased to see him.

Naruto scowled. "I thought you'd be happy to see me."

"Where's your date?"

"She's a good girl, Sasuke," he said with a grin and an irritating twinkle in his eye. "She had a curfew. So I took her home."

"It's late, Naruto."

"It's not _that_ late." Naruto poked him in the chest as he stood up and stretched. "Dad's off on a business trip in Tacoma, so I don't have a curfew. Although, you're one to talk. Do your parents know where you are?"

"They know I'm in the city."

"I see. And where were you plannin' on stayin' tonight exactly? Or," Naruto's gaze shifted to another part of the room, "Will you be spendin' the night with that singer guy?"

Smirking, Sasuke grabbed the bottom of Naruto's blue tie. "It is prom night. Isn't it customary to get laid?"

"No," Naruto said. "Not if you didn't actually _go_ to prom. You woulda liked it, y'know. Kakashi made a fuckin' hilarious chaperone, and the group of people we went with was fun."

"This is how I have fun," he stated.

Naruto looked like he was set to argue, but, instead, he folded his arms behind his head, glanced off to the side, and gave a sigh. "Alright. You're free to do what you want."

"As are you. Aren't you hot? Why don't you at least take off your jacket?"

"Because I rented it, and if I lose it, my Dad's gonna kill me."

"We can put it in one of the storage lockers in the back. I'll make sure no one takes it."

"Oh, really? I get to see the back? Will I get to meet some of the other musicians? Your band looks really cool, and you sound good, too. Even if that one guy was all over you."

"Shut up. It's just part of the show." Although flattered Naruto was apparently jealous, he kept his expression neutral as he helped him out of his jacket and threw it over his own shoulder.

"I can carry it," Naruto muttered, grabbing onto his elbow.

"It's fine. You might end up getting beer spilled all over it if you carry it."

"Beer, eh? Do you think they'll serve me here?" Naruto asked.

"Doubtful," Sasuke replied. "But..." He grinned at the other boy. "They'll serve me, so don't worry. I'll make sure you're taken care of."

"I bet you will." Naruto smirked.

Sasuke didn't want to admit it, but Naruto looked sexy in his charcoal suit pants, light blue button-up shirt, and tie. Instead of slicking his hair back, he'd had enough sense to leave it spiked and messy. He was tan from having started baseball practices, too, so his eyes were incredibly blue. In fact, he was fighting the urge to slip his arm around Naruto's waist and lay claim.

They passed the bar and through a door in the back that was for staff only. He knew pretty much everyone who worked at the club, so they didn't say anything as he made his way inside. While he found a locker that Naruto could use, the other boy leaned against the wall, checking everything out.

"So, you're really not goin' to spend the night with that guy?"

"What guy?" Sasuke played dumb as he opened the locker and hung up Naruto's jacket.

"The one you made out with on stage."

"I didn't _make out_ with him. He got caught up in the moment. No big deal." He gave a shrug.

"Yeah, right."

"I'm sure you made out with your date tonight," he remarked coolly, shutting the locker before walking over to him.

"I don't kiss and tell." Naruto's smile was crooked at first, but when he reached for Sasuke's belt to pull him over, he had a full-blown grin on his face. "I told you, she's a good girl."

"You like good girls," Sasuke replied, gaze dropping to Naruto's mouth.

"But I like _bad_ boys?" Naruto chuckled as he placed a hand on Sasuke's cheek, leaned in, and planted a brief kiss to his lips. "Happy prom, Sasuke. I really wish you would've gone. No one's as witty a bastard as you are. I had to make all the jokes."

"I'm so sorry to have inconvenienced you," Sasuke said in a low voice as he tucked a piece of Naruto's hair behind an ear. "To make it up to you... can I buy you a drink?"

"Yes." Naruto continued to look at him oddly. Or, perhaps he should say flirtatiously?

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Like what?"

"Like you want me to pull you into that corner over there so that I can have my way with you."

"I think you're projecting."

Sasuke stared, searching his face. "I'm fairly sure I'm not. You've definitely got something on your mind."

"Nope. Just happy to see you."

"Hm." Sasuke decided to drop it for now and began playing with the other teen's tie. "You clean up well."

"Is that you're way of sayin' I look hot? Think I can convince one of these older women to go home with me?"

"Sure, if they're interested in jail time."

"Guess I better go home with someone my age then, huh?"

"Where will you find someone like that in a place like this?" Sasuke asked.

"Stay with me tonight," Naruto said.

He raised an eyebrow. "Why should I?"

"You were planning to anyway, weren't you?" Naruto took hold of his wrist.

"No. I was going to head to Jirōbō's later on."

"Stay with me," Naruto repeated. "You can have my bed since dad's gone. This way I won't kick you in my sleep."

"Hm. You do move around sometimes."

"Or, we could share a bed? You know, so we can stay up and talk."

"What did she do to you that you're like this?" Sasuke asked as he adjusted the collar of Naruto's shirt. "Did you dance with her, get a little too excited, and now you want me to take over where she left off?"

Naruto's whole expression changed, and he pushed him away. "Don't be an asshole."

"Or what?"

"Tch. Sorry that I actually wanted to see you and spend time with you. Y'know I wanted you to go tonight. I practically _begged_ you."

"Okay." Sasuke reached for his arm, pulling the other boy toward him again. "I want to stay with you."

" _Sure_."

"Don't be mad," Sasuke whispered, resting his head on Naruto's shoulder, lips nearly touching his neck. "I might be... a little jealous."

"Of what?" Naruto asked, sounding surprised.

He closed his eyes. "Because you went on a date."

"To _prom_ ," Naruto replied. "You're the one makin' out with guys on the stage in front of an audience. What if someone recorded it and puts it on the internet and your father sees it?"

"Seems unlikely."

"Jerk. For the record, I only kissed her on the cheek when I brought her home."

"You're welcome to do what you want. I didn't mean to imply otherwise. We aren't dating, so there are no... obligations." He lifted his head off of Naruto's shoulder to look at him.

"I know that, but it's still... whatever. You're right. Make out with as many guys as you want. I'm happy for you."

Sasuke sighed and grabbed Naruto's hand. "For the last time, we were not making out. He's straight."

"Yeah, well. So am I, and I've had your mouth on my cock."

"Good times." Sasuke smirked. "Can't wait to have yours on mine."

"You wish." Naruto rolled his eyes. "M'tired of talkin' about it. Take me to the bar and buy me somethin' to drink. You better be a man of your word, Uchiha."

"I am," he said, placing a hand on the boy's lower back to usher him out of the room. "I will take very good care of you tonight. After all, you did dress up for the occasion."

"Ah hah, yeah. I s'pose I'm a bit overdressed for this place tonight, huh? I thought I'd miss your gig if I went home to change before comin' over here on the train."

"I told you," Sasuke finally slipped an arm around Naruto's waist. "No one says _gig_ anymore."

"Sorry. Maybe you better keep me clear of your _cool_ friends."

"Works for me." He threw Naruto a cocky look. "I wanted you all to myself anyway."

* * *

They were sitting at a high-top table, both sipping on a couple of heavily-liquored drinks. Apparently his band mates thought it would be funny to keep bringing them alcohol, but the joke was on them, because he really was having a good time. Naruto, while amusing sober, was absolutely hilarious drunk.

"Sasu _ke_." Naruto leaned over the table and nearly knocked over his drink as he grabbed Sasuke's forearm. "Seriously, this band is cool. Let's dance. Everyone else is dancin'. I wanna dance. Will you dance with me?"

"No. Stop asking me that."

"Why not?" Naruto whined, pawing at him some more. "First you wouldn't go to prom with me, and now you won't dance with me either. You suck."

"Well," he replied, smirking. "You'd know that better than anybody."

"Heh." Naruto withdrew his hand. "Fine. Maybe I'll go dance with someone else."

Sasuke thought it wouldn't be difficult for him to find a dance partner given how many women kept checking him out, but he also didn't think Naruto would abandon him for a girl either.

"I know what you're thinkin'." Naruto wagged a finger at him. "You're thinkin' I won't do it."

He might have unconsciously raised an eyebrow.

"See, that _is_ what you were thinkin'! Ah, you bastard! You're not the center of my universe, y'know."

 _Well, why the hell not?_ is what popped into his head first, but he knew better. Instead, he simply glared.

"Do what you want," he told Naruto.

"Fine. I will."

Slipping off the stool, Naruto made his way through the crowd, stopping every once in a while to talk to complete strangers. It did look like he was chatting up a particularly attractive woman who started toying with his tie, laughing at whatever line the idiot used on her. It shouldn't have been a surprise, but the two of them headed toward the dance floor. Like Naruto said, the band was good. He'd heard them play several times before and thought if he was ever to be some kind of music agent, he would've signed them to a label. Too bad that wasn't exactly what his father had in mind for him in terms of a career. The band was front by a female vocalist whose arms were covered in tattoos. Their next song had a slower tempo, so, much to his annoyance, Naruto and that bimbo were getting even closer. With a scowl, Sasuke finished off the rest of his drink.

"If looks could kill," Yagura said right next to his ear, appearing out of nowhere. He grabbed Naruto's stool and dragged it over. "I guess he really isn't your boyfriend. I thought you were only bein' coy." He pushed another drink in front of Sasuke. "That chick he's with is kinda hot. Want me to go steal her from him?"

"I'm not even sure that you could," Sasuke said, picking up his new drink.

"You think there's a chick in this place I couldn't get?"

"Naruto's a nice guy. He's completely different than you."

"Most women don't want a _nice_ guy, Sasuke. You should know that after hangin' out with us as long as you have."

Sasuke glared. "What is it you want?"

"I suppose there's no chance that if I start makin' out with you that your friend will get jealous and come back, hm?"

"I think you've been watching too many John Hughes movies," he replied.

Yagura stared at him in that arrogant way he often did. He smirked as he set his hand atop Sasuke's. "You know, the idea of sex with a guy doesn't do much for me, but sometimes I have this crazy urge to corrupt you. You're just so..."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow in anticipation.

"Innocent," finished Yagura and laughed. "For such a punk, you still seem so untainted. Makes me wanna... defile you."

Sasuke removed his hand from under Yagura's. "You're sick."

The man grinned. "I know, which is why I put a little somethin' in your drink." He pointed at the glass, laughing when Sasuke's expression turned horrified.

"The fuck?" Sasuke knocked the glass off the table, sending the alcohol in it flying at another table.

Yagura shook his head. "I'm kiddin'. Everyone knows about your big brother and how he'd kill anyone if they fucked with you." He leaned in and took hold of Sasuke's chin.

"Is there a problem here?"

Sasuke's gaze snapped to the side. Naruto was standing there with his arms crossed and eyes narrowed at Yagura. He'd seen that look before, too, so he could imagine what was going on in Naruto's head.

Smiling, Yagura placed a kiss to Sasuke's cheek before whispering in his ear, "See. I told ya that would work. I'll leave you to your knight in shining armor." As he left the table, the singer smirked at Naruto.

"What the fuck was that about?" Naruto asked when Yagura was gone again.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Sasuke sat up, trying to compose himself. "I thought you were busy."

"Yeah, well. It didn't look as though you were all that happy to be talkin' to him from where I stood."

"Mind your own business," Sasuke said. "It's got nothing to do with you."

Naruto stepped closer, putting one arm around the back of his stool and the other on the table. "The fuck it doesn't. If someone's messin' with you, it's definitely my business."

"Why?" Sasuke frowned. "Why does it matter to you if I talk to another guy or if he kisses me or hits on me?"

Naruto scowled instead of answering.

"See," he said. "You can't even come up with a reason. Next time, stay out of it."

"The fuck I will!" Naruto grabbed the front of his shirt. "You're my friend, and I _worry_ about you."

"I don't need you to worry about me."

Naruto was close enough that one of his legs was touching the inside of Sasuke's thigh. He swore that when they fought and yelled at each other it was their twisted version of foreplay. He really wanted to touch, to put his hands all over him, but he was also a little pissed off. He should be happy Naruto came back to him. But did he do it out of jealousy, or because he really thought Sasuke couldn't handle himself?

"Why'd you knock your drink off the table?" Naruto asked.

"Because he said he put something in it."

Naruto's eyes got big. "He put somethin' in it...? The _hell_? I am gonna go beat the shit out of him!"

As Naruto turned around with the intention of charging after Yagura and starting yet another fight, Sasuke stood up quickly and caught him by the wrist. "He was only messing with me, Naruto. He didn't actually put anything in it."

"What the hell kind of sick pervert does somethin' like that?"

"He was... proving a point," Sasuke muttered and shook his head when Naruto raised an inquiring eyebrow. "Forget it. Why don't we head to your place? I'm getting tired."

Naruto's expression softened into regret. "Ah, sorry." He scratched the back of his head. "You were havin' a good time, and I just ruined the mood. I... jumped to the wrong conclusion. I'm... sorry."

"It's fine," Sasuke told him. "Let me grab my guitar, and we can get your jacket."

"You sure?" Naruto asked.

He nodded and offered a reassuring smile. "I'm sure. I was getting tired of watching you dance with everyone besides me anyway."

"Wha - ? You _bastard_. I totally asked you - "

Sasuke covered his mouth. Then, he leaned in and kissed the back of the hand he was using to keep him quiet.

"I'll pay for a cab," he said to Naruto, lingering closer to him than necessary. "I don't want to carry my stuff onto a bus or train, okay?"

Dazed, Naruto nodded, and Sasuke, removing his hand, brushed past him on the way to the back room. He didn't have to look behind to know that Naruto was following. Fucking Yagura. He was a lot more sly than Sasuke had ever given him credit for; in fact, he should watch out for that guy from now on. Even if it seemed, in his own messed up way, the guy had actually been doing him a favor.

* * *

On their way to the apartment, Naruto helped Sasuke carry all of his belongings even though he'd told him that he didn't need help. Just as Naruto had said, the apartment was empty. The other boy flipped on all the lights as they went inside. They set Sasuke's guitar and backpack on the couch. Naruto turned on the TV to ESPN, but as soon as he left the living area, Sasuke switched it to the local news. When Naruto appeared again, he was sans jacket, shirt, and tie. Sasuke could all but picture those articles of clothing lying crumpled on the floor so, with a grunt, he got up and walked into Naruto's bedroom. He found the clothes in a pile on the bed.

"How old are you that you can't hang up your own clothes?" Sasuke grumbled.

Naruto came in behind him and was in the middle of pulling down his pants. "While you're at it, do ya mind hangin' these up, too?"

He shook his head. "You're annoying." But he took them anyway, folding them neatly before placing them on the hanger. He made sure all the pieces for the suit were hung up together on the back of Naruto's door.

"M'gonna go take a shower," Naruto mentioned as he sifted through one of his drawers to find another pair of underwear. "Help yourself to whatever's in the fridge. I think there's leftover pizza from a few days ago. Might be a couple Bud Lights in there, too."

"Didn't you have enough to drink at the club?" Sasuke asked.

"Ah, found 'em!" Naruto waved a pair of wrinkled green boxers at him. "Huh? Oh. Yeah. Maybe. But I thought maybe we could drink and sit out on the terrace."

"I thought you were going to take a shower." Sasuke sat down on the foot of the bed.

"Well, I'll wait. You don't mind me bein' all sweaty, right?" He grinned.

Sasuke gave him a wry look. "Fine. One beer."

"Yay. Cool."

"Why don't you at least put on a sweatshirt first. It's getting cold out there." Sasuke got up and walked to the closet, picking out something for him.

"You take such good care of me," said Naruto. "What would I do without you?"

"Hard to tell." Sasuke slipped his hands into his jean pockets, glancing around the room as Naruto got dressed.

"Ready?" Naruto asked when he was finished, but he left the room without waiting for an answer.

Sasuke followed him to the kitchen where they grabbed the two Bud Lights. Naruto opened both bottles and led the way to the balcony. The sliding door squeaked a bit. They sat at the small bistro table, and, for a while, simply enjoyed the view. The traffic was a little loud but not as bad as it could be for a Friday night.

"When's your dad coming home?" He asked.

"Tuesday, I think." Naruto started peeling at the bottle's label.

"He's been going out of town nearly every weekend it seems."

"Told ya he doesn't like to hang around here."

"Well, it's a new job, right? I'm sure it'll take some time to adjust. He probably has to do everything they ask him."

Naruto shrugged, which told him he clearly did not want to talk about it. At first, Sasuke thought Naruto was being overdramatic about his father, but it began to strike him as odd when it came to how often Minato left his son alone. However, he also attributed it to the fact that, deep down, the older man trusted Naruto to stay by himself without doing anything too stupid. That or he'd picked up on the fact he and Naruto were always spending time together and Sasuke wouldn't let something happen to the idiot.

"How's Itachi?" Naruto asked after a couple of minutes. "He comin' home anytime soon?"

"Not soon, no," Sasuke answered. "I'm sure I won't see him until his birthday."

"June 9, right?"

Sasuke frowned. "What are you, his stalker?"

"Nah. I texted and asked."

"Does he always answer your texts?"

"Yep."

"Tch." Sasuke began picking at his own label.

"So, are you and that singer really not... _y'know_?"

He looked up, raising an eyebrow. "No, I don't know."

Naruto shrugged. "Well, he kissed you," he ticked off one finger, "he seems to enjoy teasing you," he ticked off a second finger, "he's a musician," a third finger, "and he's not the most hideous douche I've ever seen," finger number four.

"What's your point, Naruto?"

"You would tell me if you were fuckin' the guy, right?"

Sasuke had a very strong inclination to pour his beer on Naruto's head. "I am not _fucking_ the guy, but when did my sex life become any of your business?"

"It's not," Naruto said matter-of-factly, "But if you are gonna fuck with someone, you can sure do a hell of a lot better than him. There's somethin' about him I don't like."

"You just don't like that he kissed me."

"True." Naruto smirked. "He shoulda at least asked my permission first."

Sasuke shook his head. "You're such an idiot."

"So you say, but my intuition's pretty good."

"Well, your intuition can suck it." Sasuke gazed up at the sky, watching a plane making its ascent.

Naruto chuckled. "That sounds like somethin' I'd say."

"That was sort of the point," he mumbled.

"Are you sure you don't wanna hear about how awesome prom was?"

"Nope."

"Everyone asked where you were. I told them you had some all-male orgy you had to get to."

"I bet."

"I mean, you put all that time and effort into the thing. Didn't you wanna see it all come together at the end?"

"No," he answered. "That's why learning to delegate is important. I made sure everything was taken care of and all the most competent people were in charge. Besides, all of the senior and junior council members should've been there. They didn't require me to be present."

"I bet your mom woulda liked you to have gone."

"I'll go next year," he said distractedly.

"With me?"

"It'll never be 'with you'," he said, getting irritated. "It'll be some group. The people will be annoying. The girl I go with will wonder why I'm not trying to feel her up, and..." He stopped himself because he was about to say something regarding not wanting to hang around while Naruto mooned all over some girl in their class.

Unfortunately, Naruto caught onto his hesitation.

"And?" He asked Sasuke. "Are there really any more excuses for you not to wanna have a fun, normal time with people your age?"

"Normal?" Sasuke snorted. "You sound like my father now."

"You're the one who always says your dad has your best interests at heart. Besides, y'never know. You may have a good time. I'd make sure of it."

"Why are you pushing this? Did Itachi tell you to get on my case about being more social?"

"No, he didn't. Don't be paranoid."

Sasuke wasn't so sure. "So, what. Do you two talk about me when you're on the phone together?"

"...Sometimes." Naruto cocked his head and smiled like it was all a big joke.

"I think I'll go inside," he remarked, standing up.

"Don't be like that, Sasuke. He worries about you. It's what brothers do."

"How would you know?" He asked coldly.

Naruto stared in surprise. "Uh... I guess I wouldn't."

"I'm taking this. You don't need any more." Even though it was half-full, Sasuke picked up Naruto's beer and went inside the apartment. It was no shocker that Naruto came after him, trying to snatch his drink back.

"No," Sasuke repeated as he poured everything down the sink. "You talk too much when you start to drink. It's getting on my nerves."

"You bastard," Naruto said, watching in horror as the beer went down the drain. "Those were the last ones!"

"Are you _trying_ to get drunk?" Sasuke narrowed his eyes.

"What's it to you? If I can't worry about you, then why the hell should you worry about me?"

"Don't be a child," he said.

"Dick. I'm takin' a shower. M'tired of you raggin' on me."

Sasuke watched him go, knowing that he was being especially hard on Naruto but not entirely sure why. Why couldn't Naruto just take 'no' for an answer? Why did he always have to push him about this kind of crap? Naruto was always trying to get him to do stuff that _he_ wanted to do. What the hell was so wrong with them liking different things? Going to prom, or whatever else Naruto thought he should be doing as a 16-year-old boy, was just uncomfortable. Circumstances were different when you were a gay kid in high school, and it annoyed him that Naruto... didn't get it.

Frustrated, Sasuke ended up cleaning all the dishes left in the sink (not that there were many). He grabbed his bag and guitar from off of the couch and brought it into Naruto's room. Sasuke figured if he took this room, Naruto would go sleep in his dad's bed or even on the couch. He probably needed a shower, too, but wasn't in the mood to wait, so, instead, he stripped off everything except his underwear. He borrowed some shirt of Naruto's that at least smelled kind of clean. Annoying how everything smelled like Naruto. It was... very distracting. Why'd he have to act like such an idiot about that stupid stage kiss anyway? It didn't even seem like Naruto was jealous really, just acting as if Sasuke was his property or something. Time to stop thinking about it. There were finals to worry about, homework he needed to get to this weekend, and also a couple of college application essays that he should write soon. This was why he couldn't wait to go to college. Hopefully there wouldn't be all this silly high school drama. He'd come out to his parents and then he'd date and fuck as many guys as he wanted!

Naruto could just go back to Illinois and -

Sasuke glanced at the picture of Kushina Uzumaki on the dresser.

"He's _your_ son," Sasuke said to her. "It's not my fault he has all these abandonment issues. Trying to keep me on a leash. Always leading me on, drawing me in, and then going off and doing what he wants when he knows I'm wrapped around his finger."

He rolled to his other side so he wouldn't see the photo and, reaching over to the nightstand, turned off the light.

For a while, he listened to the sound of the shower. It seemed like Naruto'd been in there forever, but after such a long day in the city, Sasuke couldn't help but fall asleep.

* * *

Even though he couldn't exactly remember what had happened in the dream, Sasuke started awake, left with an odd impression it involved something horrible happening to his family. It took him a second before he realized he was at Naruto's place. He was the only one in bed, too, but, odd thing, he could still hear the shower running so maybe he hadn't fallen asleep for that long. Knowing full well he couldn't get back to sleep otherwise (and because he'd left his phone in the living room), Sasuke got out of the bed with the intention of asking Naruto if he was ever going to be done in the bathroom. He leaned against the bathroom door, but all he heard was the sound of the shower. He knocked, and not getting any response from Naruto, grabbed the doorknob. It wasn't locked, so he decided to go inside.

"Naruto. Just how long are you - "

He stopped when he saw Naruto sitting on the shower floor with his knees drawn to his chest and head on his arms. There was no steam on the mirror or the doors, and when Sasuke pressed a hand to the glass stall, it was cold to the touch. The water was still falling over Naruto, who looked like he'd totally passed out under what had to be frigid water by now. He flung the door open, calling his name, but Naruto still didn't respond. As soon as he stepped under the spray of the showerhead, Sasuke was shocked by the biting temperature of the water. In a rising panic, he turned it off and dropped to his knees. He grabbed Naruto's arms, shaking him. He looked like he'd simply fallen asleep, but his skin had turned extremely pale. Even touching him, Sasuke could tell he must've been in here for a lot longer than he'd thought.

"Hey," Sasuke said, lifting Naruto's chin. "Can you hear me?"

His breathing was slow, and not knowing what else to do, Sasuke gave him a hard slap across the face.

Naruto coughed at first and, very slowly, opened his eyes, apparently trying to focus them.

"Sasuke," he said weakly. "Did you just... slap me in the fuckin' face?"

"I'm about to slap you again. What the fuck happened?"

"Huh?" Naruto rubbed his face. "Dunno. I came in here, and I was feelin' kinda dizzy so I sat on the floor. I must've fallen asleep."

"Just when I thought you couldn't get more stupid," spat Sasuke, throwing up his hands. "I told you to stop drinking so much and getting angry over stupid bullshit. What, weren't there any windows around for you to break?"

Instead of arguing with him like he'd expected, Naruto simply closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the tiled wall.

"Naruto?" Sasuke, who remained on his knees, reached forward and gripped the boy's shoulders. "I'm not going to yell at you anymore. Can you stand? You're going to catch pneumonia if you stay in here."

For some reason unknown to him, Naruto laughed.

"You think this is funny?" Sasuke started to drag him to his feet when Naruto wasn't offering much help. He was finally able to get him to stand, but he had to lean him against the wall. Sasuke's own clothes (well, and Naruto's shirt) were now soaked, too.

Suddenly, Naruto clung to him, wrapping both arms around his shoulders.

"M'cold," he said near Sasuke's ear, teeth chattering loudly.

"That's because you're naked," he replied. "I'll get you a towel." However, as he tried to pull away, the other boy clung tighter to him.

Sasuke held him for a while, ignoring the way Naruto's fingers started digging into his back. He placed a hand on the blond's hip to keep him steady.

"You're wet," Naruto said to him. "Who comes into a shower with their clothes on? I didn't ask you to do that."

"I was worried," Sasuke whispered, moving his hand up to Naruto's waist. If he didn't know any better, despite all the training the other boy had been doing lately, he thought he felt a lot skinnier than even a week ago.

Naruto lifted his head, looking at him out of the corner of his eye. "You're not allowed to worry. 'Bout me."

"So, what then? You did this to teach me a lesson? You can't even take care of yourself, so who's going to look after you?"

Naruto snorted. "I told you. I fell asleep. I was tired and drunk."

Sasuke thought there was more to it than that, but at the moment, getting Naruto into some dry clothes became the priority. Gently, he put a hand to Naruto's chest and told him to stay still for a minute. Sasuke got out long enough to grab one of the large white towels hanging nearby. He returned, briskly drying Naruto off (almost) everywhere before wrapping the towel around his shoulders.

"M'fine," Naruto kept saying as he followed Sasuke out of the shower. "Just cold."

"I'll turn the heat up. Let's go to your room first." Sasuke led the way and before he picked out some clothes, he urged Naruto to get in bed and pull the covers up around him.

"Feels warm in this spot," Naruto slurred. "Pillow smells like you, too."

Sasuke ignored that comment and rummaged through the drawers until he found a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt. He brought the clothes over to Naruto, who had curled up onto his side and was watching him.

"I'm going to need you to sit up," Sasuke said to him.

"M'tired," Naruto whined.

"Naruto," he said more firmly. "Sit up."

The boy did as he was told, and Sasuke's gaze was drawn to the bluish tint of his lips. He wondered if he should call Naruto's dad. Or maybe his own mother or even Itachi... but he didn't really think it was hypothermia since Naruto was pretty responsive. After a bit of a struggle, he was able to get the shirt on him but considering Naruto was naked from the waist down, he thought he'd at least give him the option of dressing himself.

"I'll go turn the heat up and make you something warm to drink," he said as he left the room.

While waiting for the kettle to boil, he went in search of a hair dryer, which he thought might be in Minato's bathroom. He'd left Naruto's door partially open so on his way back to the kitchen, he checked on him again and found him already under the covers. The heat finally kicked on as he poured some water into a mug for tea. He brought the mug, along with the hair dryer, to Naruto's room.

"You didn't fall asleep yet, did you?" He approached Naruto's side of the bed.

"Too cold to fall asleep." He sat up when he saw Sasuke holding the mug.

Sasuke sat beside him, watching as Naruto took his first few sips. He pressed a hand to the blond's forehead. It had all happened so fast, and while he _really_ wanted to be angry with Naruto for doing something so stupid - whether accidental or not - he could only think about how scared he'd been. Naruto, he'd come to realize, was a complicated person. Looking at him, you'd think he was this happy and carefree, but that was only one of many sides to him. In fact, Sasuke knew and often felt there was something darker there, but Naruto often kept it hidden - even from him.

Regardless of the reason, he felt unsettled. It was also true that Naruto never slept well, and that, for the last few weeks, he'd been doing nothing but getting up early for baseball practice, working out, and going to parties and clubs on the weekends (either with Sasuke or his new sports friends). Since Minato was gone so frequently, he wondered if Naruto was eating enough?

"What's that for?" Naruto asked suddenly, pointing at the blow dryer.

"For your hair, idiot." Snapping out of his thoughts, Sasuke found the nearest outlet, and despite Naruto's protests, proceeded to dry his hair for him. Occasionally, he picked out the stubborn pieces that refused to dry or ran his fingers through all the tangled strands of blond. When he finished 10 minutes later, he turned it off, wrapped up the cord, and set it on the floor.

"Feeling better?" He asked.

"Mm." Naruto nodded.

"Drink your tea." Sasuke brushed his bangs out of his eyes. "You need a haircut."

Naruto gave him a look before taking a few more sips from his Starbuck's mug.

Not knowing what to say, Sasuke glanced at his hands and then out the bedroom door, into the lighted hallway. Now that Naruto seemed to be okay, he finally felt like he was calming down.

"Thank you," said Naruto.

Sasuke looked back at him. "Don't scare me like that again."

"You were scared?" Naruto started to grin.

When Sasuke didn't answer, Naruto began to hum.

"M'sorry. Really. I just felt... so tired all of a sudden, and... then it was so hot in there it made me dizzy. I guess I sorta fell asleep."

"Fell asleep or passed out, I wonder." Again, Sasuke felt the other teenager's forehead. "You feel warm. I'll get you some Tylenol."

"Mmkay."

He went into the bathroom again and found a couple of tablets in the cabinet. Before heading back to the bedroom, Sasuke checked the front door, unable to remember if they'd locked it earlier. He flipped off all of the lights and returned to Naruto's room. He handed him the pain relievers, and Naruto took them with what was left of the tea. The boy set the mug on the nightstand, rolled to his back, and looked up at Sasuke enquiringly.

"Get in?"

Sasuke blinked at him. "It might be better if I sleep on the couch, don't you think?"

"Why?"

"Because."

Naruto reached for his arm. "Are you still mad at me 'cause of whatever reason you were mad at me for earlier?"

"I was _mad_ because you were concerning yourself too much with my personal business."

"I was not," Naruto started to argue, "I was only - "

Sasuke gave him a look.

"I... maybe you're right. It's none of my business what you do, Sasuke. I know this, but I still worry. I'm sorry. I'll try to be better about it if it's botherin' you that much."

"No, it's..." Sasuke rubbed the back of his head, feeling guilty now. "It's just...it doesn't make sense to me. You're out on a date, and then you come to the show without even telling me and get on my case about some guy kissing me. I don't know how to process it all sometimes. I've told you that before."

"That _guy_ thinks it's funny to tell you he roofied your drink. You realize, if it was Itachi there and not me, he would've broken that asshole's kneecaps."

"I know." Sasuke smirked a little despite himself. "Good thing he wasn't there."

"Yeah, well maybe I'll call and tell 'em tomorrow," Naruto said bitterly.

"No, you won't." Sasuke leaned over him. "Since we're going to work on boundaries, I think."

"I don't want boundaries." Naruto pouted. "I don't think we need any."

"I think we need some. Not just for your sake, but maybe a little for mine, as well."

"What do you mean?" Naruto pulled back the covers. "Are you not gettin' in 'cause it's crossin' _boundaries_?"

"I do believe that would fall under inappropriate, yes."

Naruto gazed at him seriously. "I don't understand the problem."

Looking at him, Sasuke sighed. "That's a problem in itself."

A couple of minutes passed with neither of them saying anything. Naruto kept looking at him like he was trying to work out everything in his head, and Sasuke almost felt sorry for him because, for Naruto, everything he did was mostly impulsive - he didn't think first before he got angry, or when he got into fights, or when he said some of the things he did. Maybe for Naruto all the fooling around and jealousy wasn't a problem, but for Sasuke it was becoming harder to keep the line from blurring at times. Then again, maybe Naruto didn't see it as a problem because he didn't take the stuff that happened between them seriously. Sasuke thought he hadn't been either, but when Naruto showed signs of... possessiveness, it really did his head in.

"I don't feel like sleepin' alone," Naruto said. "You can put pillows between us if you're that bothered about sleepin' with me."

"Idiot." Sasuke lightly and affectionately punched him in the cheek. "I'm never bothered about the idea of sleeping with you."

Naruto grinned at him. "I'll let you spoon me."

"Oh joy," Sasuke said sarcastically.

"By the way, you might wanna change your clothes. They're all wet. And, is that my shirt?"

Sasuke glanced down, having totally forgotten that he'd gone into the shower with his clothes on.

"You can borrow somethin' of mine," Naruto told him.

"Duh. What else was I going to do? Sleep naked with you?"

"It's an option." Naruto waved a hand at him. "I've seen you naked a few times already, y'know."

"That was before you started dating what's her face."

"We're not _dating_ ," Naruto groaned.

Sasuke rifled through Naruto's wardrobe for a new pair of pants and a shirt.

"You can borrow boxers, too," Naruto said. "Don't mind. Unless wearin' my underwear is crossin' _more_ boundaries."

After sending him a glare, Sasuke did find a pair, and as he turned around again, noticed Naruto watching him.

"Are you going to watch me get dressed?" He asked.

"I was thinkin' about it. Why are you all shy and weird tonight?"

"I'm not shy," he argued. "I'm... trying to be modest."

"Want me to close my eyes?"

"No, I just want you to stop watching me like you're some priest eyeing up one of his altar boys."

Naruto chuckled. "Sick."

"Hn."

Sasuke proceeded to strip off his wet clothes and pulled on the boxers, shirt, and pants. Then he got into bed with Naruto, switched off the lamp, and rolled to his side. It felt very warm under the sheets and comforter.

Naruto shifted onto his other side but remained kind of quiet. A few minutes later, with Sasuke staring at the back of Naruto's head and his whole body itching to get closer, he shuffled over and put an arm around him. He brushed his nose above Naruto's shirt collar and sighed. He hated himself for being so weak to this.

"Were you... really that bothered I went with her to prom?" Naruto asked.

"No...," He replied hesitantly. "I know I told you I didn't want to go. I'm glad you went."

"I really wish you would've gone, but I get it. I know that stuff isn't your scene. You could've at least told me you had a show, though. I had to hear about it from Itachi."

"Why would I?" He asked. "I knew you had other plans." He let his hand start to wander up Naruto's t-shirt.

"I thought we weren't gonna kiss anyone for the first month," Naruto teased.

"It's been more than a month since that time." Sasuke brushed his lips across the back of Naruto's neck and felt him shiver. "It's not like I knew he was going to kiss me."

"You seemed pretty willing to me."

"Jealous?"

It was half a minute before Naruto admitted, "A little."

Biting his lip, Sasuke's hand roved higher until he had his arm wrapped around Naruto's chest. "You don't _like_ other men kissing me?"

"It's not like that," Naruto mumbled. "You're not my property. But I just... can't help it. I mean, I don't wanna keep you from datin' or kissin' guys, but don't kiss the _wrong_ guys. That guy was just bein' a dick."

"Maybe."

"Tch. No maybes about it."

Sasuke leaned over, biting down on Naruto's ear before whispering into it, "No matter who I make out with, I'll always come back to you if you ask. If you _beg_."

"Like I'd beg," replied Naruto, shifting up against him.

"Oh, you'll beg for it alright. Maybe not now... but eventually."

Naruto chuckled. "You're such a cocky bastard."

"You already keep coming back. You came to find me tonight."

"Yeah, and look how that turned out. You nagged me so much I had to flee to the shower to get some peace."

"That's not fair," he said, unable to keep himself from tugging at Naruto's shirt so that he could have access to a bare shoulder, which he kissed wetly. "You were being unreasonable."

"I just can't turn that side of me off. You should know that by now. Look at you. You came to my rescue in the shower. I bet if you saw someone givin' me a hard time, you'd show up just like you did that time in the locker room."

"I thought you were going to get expelled. That's a bit different than beating up some guy for kissing me during a show."

"I was _okay-ish_ with that. I was more mad about when I thought he was doin' somethin' you didn't like, and then when he said he put somethin' in your drink... Apparently when the hot, older guys bat their eyelashes at you, you lose all common sense."

Sasuke gave that thought, partially amused Naruto could come up with such ideas. "You don't know what you're talking about."

"Please, I know what it's like when an older woman pays me attention. I doubt it's much different with you, especially if you look at your first time. I bet you slobbered all over that Yahiko guy, too. 'Oh Yahiko, be gentle with me. It's my first time'!"

Sasuke withdrew his arm from around Naruto and rolled him over so that they were facing one another.

"Yahiko sounds nothing like that," Sasuke told him, shaking his head. "That was a terrible impression."

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "What are you, his fanboy?"

"What if I am?"

"Ah, I see. You're just usin' me until you get to go to Stanford again and have a chance to shag him?"

"Hardly. He has a girlfriend."

"I wonder if that would stop you."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "What are you trying to say?"

Naruto shrugged. "Nothin'. Nothin' at all."

"What about _your_ friend? Since you took her to prom, she probably expects for you two to go out."

"I think she's aware we're both just friends." Naruto placed his hand on the bed between them. "At least for now."

"Is that so."

"We both should date if we can, right? I mean, if you actually wanted to date, y'know you could. Obviously other guys are interested in you."

 _But not the one I want_.

"I have standards," he replied haughtily.

"Good. Then I won't have to beat them up for treatin' you like crap."

"I wouldn't let anyone treat me like crap. Maybe all I'm looking for in a relationship is sex."

"Are you?" Naruto searched his face. "Is that why we do the stuff we do?"

"Don't you," Sasuke licked his lips, slightly afraid to ask, "Want to have sex? Not necessarily with me, of course, but... with women."

"Sure, I guess. Or at least my penis does, yeah. It reminds me all the time of how good sex feels. But..."

"But?" He watched as Naruto started pulling at the sheet.

"I want things to be cool with us first."

"Cool?"

"Yeah... I just. It doesn't feel right that you've decided not to date, and then if _I_ start datin'... Well, we wouldn't be able to do this anymore if I was datin' somebody is what I wanna say."

"I know." Sasuke cupped Naruto's cheek and smiled at him even though thinking about Naruto being intimate with someone else really sucked. "You're very loyal."

Naruto smiled back at him. "Thanks for noticin'."

"You're also very stubborn."

"You say that like it's a bad thing."

"You look really good in a suit."

"Damn right I do."

He leaned in some more and pulled Naruto to him by the collar. "You're...a very good kisser."

Both moving in for it at the same time - they kissed - and all of his notions about putting some distance between them completely flew out the window. Because. Kissing Naruto was always addictive. The instant their lips touched, Naruto's whole body turned into a ball of fire... not literally, but the _sparks_... he was so confident in all he did, and all Sasuke had to do was initiate it. Then, most of the time, he was fine with letting Naruto take control because he was just so fucking _good_ at it. Naruto had gone on about someone kissing him, but Sasuke had also noticed how many of the girls at school were into Naruto. Even when they would go out, women were always coming up to him, but it was Sasuke that he went home with.

To be kissed by Naruto, to have his attention when he was surprisingly selective about who he gave it to... it always left him wanting more.

When they finally broke apart, Naruto had rolled Sasuke onto his back - a thigh between his legs. He looked down at Sasuke's face while fingering a few pieces of hair to the side. Eventually, he tucked it behind his ear.

"You forgot good in bed," Naruto said with a grin and slowly rubbed his thigh against Sasuke's crotch.

His eyes fluttered shut, and as Naruto pushed up his shirt, he began to run his tongue in circles around his nipple.

"I know I'm not supposed to act like you're mine," Naruto breathed seductively against his collarbone while running a hand up under his shirt and along his side, "But I'm not too thrilled with the idea of lettin' anyone else do this kinda stuff to you."

" _God_ ," Sasuke let out when Naruto continued rubbing against him, "Then don't."

"Sasuke," he murmured, crawling on top of him completely and latching onto the side of his neck.

Naruto started to rock his hips into him - more slow than fast - and all Sasuke could do was open his mouth to take in small gasps while Naruto lavished kisses on him everywhere he could reach. Sometimes, he pushed his hand under Sasuke's shirt to touch him, to pinch a nipple, or tease him by skimming fingers above the waistband of the pajama pants. The way Naruto kept panting near his ear was sending a rush of blood to certain areas already responding to having a hot body pressed on top of him. He gripped one of Naruto's hips and pushed his other hand under the back of Naruto's shirt. No longer cold and clammy like before, Naruto's skin felt burning hot against his, and while he would've loved for them to strip and rub up against each other in a naked, writhing mess - he was still worried about a draft causing Naruto to get sick.

Humming questioningly, Naruto stopped moving and took hold of both Sasuke's pants and boxers. "I should reward you for comin' to my rescue, don't y'think?"

"What?" Sasuke's brain had stopped comprehending the English language.

Smiling, Naruto knelt between his legs and yanked everything down to his ankles before pulling them off entirely and throwing them on the floor. There wasn't much time to lodge a protest between the shock of the cool air hitting his skin and Naruto's hot mouth as it started running all over the lower half of his body. Out of all the times they'd hooked up since that first weekend, Naruto had never once gone down on him. The way things were looking right now, it seemed that his 'reward' would involve Naruto ( _yes, thank God!_ ) sucking his cock. If Naruto did anything, it ended in a handjob. Or, sometimes they dry-humped each other until one or both reached a climax. Sasuke, of course, was always happy to suck Naruto off. Not to say they did stuff _every time_ they slept over at each other's houses, but it was pretty difficult _not_ to given an opportunity. He only wished he would've left the light on. He could feel and touch, but he wanted to see Naruto's mouth on him.

"Fuck," he muttered, shutting his eyes when Naruto settled in between his legs and started stroking him.

Yahiko had gone down on him, and even if it hadn't lasted long, he could tell the older man was experienced and confident at what he was doing.

On the other hand, Naruto - at least for the first few minutes - seemed to be experimenting and (maybe adjusting to the idea of another guy's dick in his mouth?). At first, he sucked and mouthed the head, but then he began to use his tongue. He took Sasuke's cock in hand and licked the sides of his shaft... flicking the tip of his tongue against the tip of his penis while using a hand to continuously pump him...and then with Sasuke using a hand to guide him - Naruto took the hard length into his mouth again.

"Naruto," he moaned, wanting to hold back so that it could go on forever.

But, making it difficult was Naruto's inability to keep quiet. No surprise there, as he was loud in everything he did. However, the enthusiastic little sounds, the purposeful slurping and wet noises that were happening were pushing him closer and closer to the edge.

"Naruto, I'm going to come if you don't stop." He tried to tug the boy up by the hair, but Naruto reached up and batted his hands away. He pushed Sasuke's legs up into the air, holding them behind the knees.

Sasuke only managed a few more thrusts inside Naruto's mouth before he came, pulling at the blond's hair until - when he could no longer take any more - he was able to yank Naruto off in order to have a reprieve.

After placing a few more kisses and licks to his cock and inner thigh, Naruto crawled over him on all fours, leaned down, and kissed him sloppily. Reaching for the back of Naruto's head, he kissed the other boy hard and with such _wanting_ that if Naruto rolled him over and fucked him into oblivion right this second, Sasuke thought he could die a very happy man. He snuck a hand between their bodies, cupping Naruto, and finding him at least half-hard, rubbed and squeezed until the other boy grabbed his wrist and pulled his hand away.

Naruto settled on top of him, continuing to kiss him on the mouth while still occasionally grinding his hips against Sasuke's.

Following an especially long series of kisses, Sasuke placed a hand to Naruto's chest and pushed him up. "You know what you taste like, don't you?"

"Yeah." Naruto bit his lip, eyes searching Sasuke excitedly. "So much for boundaries, huh?"

"I figured you did it on purpose. You really hate being told what to do, don't you."

"I couldn't help it. You give me rules and stuff, and I end up just wantin' to break them."

"Rewarding me with sexual favors once again..." Sasuke took in a deep breath before gently touching the side of Naruto's face.

"Stop sayin' stuff like that," Naruto told him. "I wanted to suck you off, so I did."

"Believe me," he said. "I'm not complaining."

"What? But you like to complain about _everything_."

"Shut up, Naruto."

"Make me," he said, so Sasuke pulled him down again and shoved his tongue so far down Naruto's throat that it would've been impossible for him to say a single goddam word.

He would've loved to have gotten Naruto off, but when they were done making out and he was able to finally get out of bed so that he could put on his pants, the other boy was on his back, beside him, and looking incredibly tired.

Naruto let out a heavy breath and glanced over at him. "I can't seem to get myself to stop doin' stuff with you. What do you think that means?"

"I doubt you want me to answer that."

"Heh." Naruto ruffled his hair. "This is gonna get complicated at some point."

"Probably," he agreed. "Maybe you _should_ date that girl. That way we may learn to keep our hands off of each other."

"Are you tellin' me to go date someone?"

"Not someone," he said. "A girl preferably. If you start dating Sai, I have to be honest and say I may bludgeon the both of you in your sleep."

Naruto chuckled. "I'm not gonna date Sai."

"Because you're not into boys?"

"Because I'm not into Sai that way."

"What other ways can you be _into_ Sai exactly?"

Naruto laughed and swatted at him. "Maybe the same way I'm sometimes into you?"

"You've yet to be _into_ me."

"Hmm. Your first time you fuck a guy should be special, Sasuke. I'm sure that special guy is around somewhere."

"I'm sure," he replied, giving Naruto a meaningful look.

Naruto coughed. "I'm probably not that guy. You can do better."

Sasuke gazed at him a long moment before sighing. "I think I'll go to sleep. You should rest, too. It seems your body isn't exactly keeping up with your daily routine these days. Maybe you should take better care of yourself."

"Why should I when you're always takin' care of me? Besides, did that just seem like my body's not able to keep up with me?"

Sasuke shook his head. "Don't be ridiculous. I only want to take care of that special man out there that's going to let me fuck him. As for what just happened now, at least if you start dating someone, I'll have some great masturbatory fodder."

"Heh, I bet. And if that special man ever shows up, I'll try to like him and not immediately want to punch 'em in the face."

"Hn."

"Funny, huh? Guess people really do get laid on prom night."

"It's your prom night, idiot. Not mine."

"Doesn't matter." Naruto gave him one last kiss before flopping onto his back and then _onto_ his side again and then _onto_ his stomach.

"Are you going to move around all night?" Sasuke asked.

"Maybe. Unless you spoon me and hold me in your arms," Naruto joked.

"We'll see. I'll wait until you're asleep first."

"Why would you do that? I like to cuddle. I like when you cuddle me."

"Okay." Sasuke gave one of his sleeves a yank to get him on his side again and slid up against his back. "You can be my date until morning since I didn't have one tonight."

"You should at least ask me first," Naruto replied, snuggling up against him.

"No. If I see something I want, I go for it."

"That's what I always say!"

"What are you complaining about then? You like it when I'm forceful," Sasuke said. "You practically came in your pants that one night at my house. When I shoved you against the door and said those _dirty_ things in your ear."

"Y'know how I feel about the dirty talk. Get over it already."

"Maybe next time you can try it out on me."

"Seriously?"

"Mm."

"I thought you'd hit me if I ever tried that."

"Hardly. Sometimes it's difficult just to talk to you on the phone late at night."

"Huh? Why?" Naruto took hold of Sasuke's hand and laced their fingers together.

"When you're tired and your voice gets all... low and husky. It's very sexy."

"You said I'm sexy."

"I said your _voice_ is sexy." Sasuke squeezed him from behind. "Go to sleep, Naruto. Hopefully you don't wake up sick."

"Can't be sick. Got practice on Monday."

"You have practice _every_ day."

"Feels like it. Will you come see one of my games this summer?"

"Of course," he replied, resting his chin on Naruto's shoulder. "I want to see you in your uniform."

"Maybe I'll wear my jock strap for you some time."

"Please do," he groaned, making Naruto's body shake with laughter again.

Both settling down, Sasuke already felt his eyes slipping shut. Always when they ended up like this, there was such a wonderful feeling of warmth and contentment he got from having Naruto in his arms. Maybe it wouldn't be the _end_ of the world if Naruto dated. It might mean they wouldn't be doing stuff like this anymore, but he also knew Naruto would still be a close friend. He would've said _best_ friend, but he didn't want it to go to Naruto's head just how important he'd become in such a short amount of time. It was rare that Sasuke ever worried about anyone outside of his family and, yet, when he'd seen Naruto sitting there in the shower like that, it definitely occurred to him that this was one more person he wanted to protect and keep safe and be there for...

At least for as long as Naruto would let him.

If Naruto found someone else he wanted to be with romantically, then he would try his best to let go of that small bit of hope he still sometimes had when they got together. After all, Naruto deserved to be with someone who wasn't afraid to let their feelings for him be known.

He squeezed the other teenager one last time and placed a kiss near his shoulder.

One day when he finally was ready to come out for real -

Would Naruto be there waiting for him?

God, he hoped so because if it wasn't Naruto, he'd always be wishing that it was.

* * *

 **a/n:** If you're desperate to read more, I did write something called "Valley of the Endings" on y-gallery. It has a bunch of endings/continuations of various WIPs I've done over the years. There is one that takes place for the dream universe when they're about 22/23.


	2. Calm Before the Storm I

a/n: These next two chapters take place in the October after they met.

Netamashii on tumblr (izayamilk on Twitter) has done beautiful art for this chapter. Go find her. She's amazing!

* * *

After a couple of weeks of not being able to hang out much, Naruto had somehow managed to convince Sasuke to go along with him to a party, where a few of the varsity morons got together with their cheerleader girlfriends, drank themselves stupid, and exchanged STDs with one another. It was the fall of their junior year, only two weeks after Homecoming, and Sasuke's parents were out of town. Though he would've preferred they hang out at his house, Naruto insisted that either Sasuke come with him or he would stubbornly go alone. Whenever Naruto went by himself to these parties, he never came home in good shape. So, he decided to go with him in the hopes of keeping him out of trouble.

Big mistake.

Sasuke hated parties for a reason. They were at a house party, but he had no idea whose house it actually was. Most of the people here weren't even high schoolers, they were students from the University of Washington. Because Naruto was in one of his more self-destructive moods, he kept wandering off on his own, and every time he stumbled back to Sasuke's side, he was that much more drunk. Not to mention when Naruto drank he became extremely flirty. Unfortunately, the object of his advances was not Sasuke but basically anyone walking around who also happened to have breasts.

It's not to say that he hadn't seen Naruto flirting with girls before, and since they'd met last spring, Naruto had chosen to date girls from their school. At first it sucked, but the relationships didn't last especially long, and if he wasn't dating someone, Naruto was mostly with him. He knew he didn't have any right to keep Naruto from seeing other people. He could pretend that all Naruto did with those girls was hold hands, but he knew that wasn't the case. Thankfully, Naruto never brought it up in front of him Sasuke could get laid, too, if he wanted.

That still didn't keep him from grinding his teeth and shooting glares every time a girl pawed at Naruto or vice versa.

In order to put some distance between them, Sasuke made his way to the kitchen where all of the alcohol was spread out. There were so many bottles of liquor that at least a couple of people were going to die of alcohol poisoning tonight. Two girls in incredibly tight-fitting dresses tried to catch his eye, but he ignored them as he filled a red solo cup with whatever was closest - tequila, rum, and some Coke. From the first sip, he could tell this was going to be a mistake. He weaved his way through the crowd, drawn to wherever the music was coming from.

Thankfully, it wasn't any terrible rap or pop music, but some chill stuff that he wouldn't be ashamed to listen to. In the living room, there was a relatively attractive guy playing DJ. He was wearing a tanktop with a lot of tattoos showing on his arms and chest. In a way, he reminded Sasuke of Yahiko. His heart skipped a beat when the DJ glanced up and met his gaze. If Sasuke didn't know better, he'd say he was being checked out. Was it that obvious he'd been staring? It unnerved him to be exposed like that, so he turned around and walked out of the room with the intent of wandering upstairs.

It was a big house, owned by some rich kid's parents. Lots of unnecessary rooms with fancy antiques and breakables that were just asking to be stolen or destroyed. He sipped at his drink, humming with the music as he observed all of the family photos. They must do a lot of traveling, which explained the out of control house party happening in their mansion while they were probably away in Europe somewhere.

Sasuke sighed. He shouldn't have come here.

"You look bored."

At first, he thought it was Naruto, which is why he turned around. It ended up being the DJ. It was particularly hard for Sasuke not to let his eyes wander - all over.

"It's tolerable," he replied. "At least there's free alcohol."

"True. You're into music?"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, either you were interested in the music, or you were checking me out."

"That's rather presumptuous, don't you think?" He didn't like the idea of being outed here when he knew there were people from school around.

"Yeah. I was taking a shot. I couldn't say that I was sure, but now I am."

"Oh?" He scowled.

The other man took a couple of steps toward him, keeping eye contact, and then he pressed a hand to Sasuke's chest.

"Are you here alone?"

"No." Unfortunately, Sasuke's hormones were reacting to the touch and the look in the other man's eyes. "I'm... with a friend."

"A guy?"

"Yes."

He nodded. "Is this guy... really just a friend?"

That was a fair question.

"Is there any other type of friend?" Sasuke asked, taking hold of the man's wrist and forcing him to let go of his shirt.

"I think we both know the answer to that."

It wouldn't be impossible to hide away in one of these rooms without getting caught. Damn hormones. Sasuke was so tempted.

"You're hesitating. If you're not interested, I'll go back to what I was doing, but if you're even the slightest bit interested," he smirked, "Or curious. I'd love to - " His eyes dropped to Sasuke's lips. "Get to know you better?"

"Is that the best you can do?" Sasuke asked.

There was something about the way this guy kept looking at him. He had that glint of humor and confidence in his eyes that Naruto always did... ah, Naruto... what was it that he should do here? Naruto always got with whom he pleased. Sasuke should do the same. But, could he do that knowing Naruto was downstairs? Not that Naruto had even noticed he was gone apparently.

"Is that a challenge?" The man asked and, touching Sasuke's cheek, leaned in for a kiss.

Knowing that there was no one else up here, Sasuke let it happen. It wasn't affectionate, but it was enough to gauge the level of interest.

The DJ pulled away. "How's that?"

"Not bad."

"I'd be happy to show you more of what I can do. If you're... open to it."

Even the cologne he wore reminded him of Yahiko. Again, he thought of Naruto flirting with all of those busty sorority girls earlier in the evening. It was normal for them to do these things, and if Sasuke could get away with it, he should have some fun, too.

"Fine," he said. "But not here."

"Sure. I know the house pretty well." The DJ took him by the hand and led him down the hallway to one of the rooms. "I can be discreet, and I'm not looking for any attachments."

"Good," said Sasuke. "Neither am I."

* * *

Naruto had totally lost track of time. Just how long had he been down in the basement? He'd made the mistake of taking a joint someone offered, and after several beers and a handful of shots, he barely knew which way was up. In the back of his mind, he kept wondering where Sasuke had wandered off to. He should get up off of this couch and find him, but... his body felt heavy. Or could it be all of these people on top of him? Maybe he'd passed out for a few minutes, but there were a couple of girls sitting on top of his sprawled out body. They didn't seem to notice he was there, but he found himself listening to their conversation. Normally, he wouldn't have eavesdropped but he was so high off his ass that he couldn't help but listen. They weren't discussing boys or college; one of the girls was talking to the other about her twin sister who'd died when they were 8 years old.

The way he listened to her talk was the same as listening to a sad record. He wasn't supposed to hear all of this, was he? It made him think of his mother. When he couldn't take it anymore, he shifted until they got the hint. Without even breaking their conversation, they moved to the side so that Naruto could get out from under them. Instead of walking away, though, he paused and turned to the girl who'd been talking.

"Can I hug you?" He asked.

"What?"

"I'm sorry that I was eavesdropping, but... I lost my mom recently. I wanted to hug you. If that's not weird."

The girl looked at her friend, who just shrugged.

"Okay..."

She stood up and Naruto put his arms around her.

"How old were you?" She asked.

"Just turned 16 at the time."

"I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry about your sister," he said. "I'm glad you have someone to talk about her to."

Naruto left her alone. Both of the girls sort of stared at him, but then he walked away. He stuffed his hands in his pockets, feeling like the world was spinning and his mood had suddenly taken a dark turn. Normally, he would've gone to find Sasuke and cried on his shoulder, but, instead, he headed to the kitchen to pour himself a drink. He did look around, though, trying to find Sasuke's spiky dark hair amidst the crowd. It seemed there were at least twice as many people as when he'd first arrived. He could've sworn there'd been music playing the last time he was up here, too. Sasuke wouldn't have left him already, would he?

Nah, he would. Naruto knew he hated these types of parties, but for some reason, he'd agreed to come tonight. He could call him, he supposed, but if Sasuke wanted to find him, Naruto knew they would've bumped into each other by now.

An attractive (older) blond chick suddenly grabbed him by the arm, stopping Naruto in his tracks.

"Hey," she said flirtatiously.

"Hey," he replied.

"You're cute. Do you have a girlfriend? You go to school here, right?"

"I do go to school here, yeah." She probably meant college, but, hey, at least he wasn't lying.

"What about a girlfriend? Do you have one?"

"If I did," he said. "I doubt she'd let me come here by myself."

The blond laughed. "You're funny."

"Funny and cute?" He said. "Sounds like I got a lot goin' for me."

"You don't... have any weed, do you?"

"I don't," he said. "But some people downstairs do."

"Oh, yeah?"

"Mm. I'd suggest starting there. Sorry." He walked past, even knowing she wanted to continue the conversation, but he wasn't in the mood.

Naruto entered the living room where there'd been a DJ earlier. He thought maybe Sasuke would've been around here. No matter where they went, at least if there was music, Sasuke would gravitate toward it. He decided to check his phone, but there were no messages from Sasuke telling him he'd left.

Naruto shot him a text.

 _Where you at? You still at the party or did you leave me?_

He waited about half a minute for a reply, but nothing came. Frowning, he slipped his phone into his pocket again, found an empty seat, and decided to nurse his drink for a while.

* * *

They'd locked the door and turned off the lights. Sasuke lay on the bed with the DJ. They'd spent the last five minutes making out in a room that, judging by the décor, belonged to a pre-teen girl. He and Naruto hadn't done anything for two and a half weeks, so his body was quick to react to the older man's touches when his fingers skimmed the inside of Sasuke's thigh, teasing him.

The text notification on his phone went off.

"Don't even think about checking that," said the other man as he sucked and bit at Sasuke's neck.

Sasuke knew there were only two people who'd be texting him: Naruto or Itachi. He wasn't inclined to answer either of them. Naruto'd had his chance before abandoning him, and Itachi, well, obviously whatever his brother needed could wait.

"I wasn't," he replied and let out a quiet gasp as the DJ cupped his crotch and rubbed him.

"I don't even know your name." The man's lips brushed across his cheek.

"You don't need to know it."

"You talk cold, but your body's on fire. I hope this isn't your first time."

"Even if it was, you shouldn't worry about it," he replied. "And I never said we were going that far. But I won't leave you dissatisfied."

"I bet you won't."

Sasuke kissed him. Mostly because he wanted the conversation to end. At this point, he only wanted to feel good for a little while.

He liked feeling wanted.

It was unfortunate that every time he closed his eyes he imagined Naruto touching or kissing him. If he wasn't thinking about that, he was thinking what Naruto would do differently or how it would've been better.

It almost felt like he was cheating, which didn't make sense. They'd always agreed that they were free to do what they wanted. Naruto certainly did, and, if anything, that blond idiot was the one who dragged him here in the first place, so if he ended up sulking, he only had himself to blame.

Not to say that the thought of Naruto being jealous didn't thrill him.

That it didn't just send a pleasurable jolt from his spine all the way to his toes.

"Like that, do you?" The man asked, his hot breath ghosting across Sasuke's jaw as he rubbed a thigh against him.

Sasuke didn't answer. He only closed his eyes.

Blond hair. Blue eyes. Tanned skin. Passion in every touch or kiss. Affection. Laughter. Lust. Anger. Friendship. Attraction.

All of those feelings lay just underneath the surface, fanning his sexual desire. He tempted himself with images of Naruto. It's not like he needed to know what Sasuke thought about when he was with another guy. How smug would Naruto be knowing that Sasuke would probably always compare lovers to him? Was that so wrong?

Somewhere in the dark, he moaned as a hand snuck beneath the waistband of his jeans and underwear to touch his aching erection.

"Feel good?" That strange voice asked.

Not Naruto's.

"No more talking from now on," he said. "Only this." Sasuke rocked up into the hand.

Unlike that other person on his mind, this man gave no argument. He obediently did as Sasuke told him. Maybe that's why it took him a little longer than expected to get what he needed out of this.

* * *

When it had been more than 20 minutes and he still hadn't received a reply from Sasuke, Naruto started to worry. He was a little annoyed that Sasuke might be throwing a tantrum because he'd gone off and done his own thing tonight after bringing him here. Was it so wrong that he thought Sasuke should make at least some attempt at socializing with others? How was he ever going to survive college if he had no interest in meeting new people or partaking in normal high school debauchery? Not to say he didn't appreciate Sasuke's independence or rebelliousness. Rather, those were things he loved about his best friend, but Naruto wouldn't be around forever. Wouldn't it look weird if they clung to each other all night? Not that he minded, but it was always Sasuke who got paranoid about that stuff in public.

Naruto wandered outside briefly to see if Sasuke was among a group playing guitars out on the back porch. He did stay to listen for a few minutes before heading back inside. He went down to the basement in case he was there, and they just kept missing each other. This time, those girls from before waved at him, and he waved back on reflex.

They might've even wanted to chat with him because of earlier, but he was more interested in finding his friend and making sure he wasn't either 1.) passed out somewhere 2.) being swamped by fangirls.

After the basement, he checked the kitchen. Not finding him there, Naruto went upstairs to the second floor. He hadn't explored that area of the house yet. A few of the rooms were closed off, and understanding perfectly what could be happening inside, he only ventured into the ones where the doors were open.

Naruto took out his phone and instead of messaging Sasuke, this time he called.

It was odd, but he could've sworn that he heard a phone ringing from behind one of the doors. He clicked 'end' and the ringing stopped. It could've been a coincidence, so he called again.

The ringing started once more.

To be honest, his first reaction was confusion. Stupidly, he considered that someone might have stolen Sasuke's phone. He knew that wasn't the case, but the reality of the situation...

Naruto immediately felt ill.

But… why? Sasuke did _not_ pick up guys. Sure, Naruto had watched men hit on him at clubs before, or when he played with his band. However, he couldn't imagine Sasuke risking being 'outed' by getting it on with some dude at a stupid party. And, it's not as if he'd suddenly gone all bi-curious on him and decided to hook up with a chick.

There was the off-chance that Sasuke had passed out in one of these bedrooms, but... Sasuke didn't drink to get drunk very often. He was up here, and he was definitely with someone who wasn't him.

Naruto hadn't moved for a few minutes, but he started to walk toward the door where he'd heard the phone ring.

It's not as if he was going to barge in...

He didn't want to hear anything. He thought if he heard Sasuke's voice, Sasuke moaning -

He would've broken down the door and committed double homicide.

Best to walk away.

Sasuke didn't owe him anything. They weren't dating. Hell, Naruto had dated a couple of girls over the summer, and Sasuke hadn't said a word even though it got awkward as hell at times. Even though Naruto felt guilty at times. But, he'd also thought Sasuke could use those as opportunities to do... his own thing.

God, what was this feeling?

He knew it. It was jealousy, and it was burning him up inside.

Slowly, Naruto backed away, not wanting to make any noise that would draw attention. He turned around and made his way downstairs. He guessed he'd just have to wait for Sasuke to finish up... whatever it was... _whoever_ it was... that he was doing.

* * *

After it was all over, Sasuke remembered looking up at the ceiling for a long time, trying to categorize this feeling.

"I should get back down there. This kid is actually paying me, so..."

"It's fine," he remarked in a raspy voice. "I don't need any hand-holding."

"I suppose I shouldn't ask if you want to call me sometime?"

Sasuke snorted as he adjusted himself and pulled up his pants.

"See you around then. Come and find me if you change your mind." Looking disappointed, the DJ left the room and shut the door.

It had been okay. Sort of like itching a scratch.

But what was this feeling nagging him?

The end result was hollow, and he felt angry with himself. Although the anger seemed to be a blend of a few other emotions he didn't want to analyze right now. The phone ringing in the middle of it had been rather distracting. He knew who it was. Naruto was looking for him. What should he say when they ran into each other? Should he tell him the truth? Should he wait until Naruto asked? Should he not bother mentioning anything?

Why did this tiny part of him want to flaunt it?

It disgusted and excited him.

Would Naruto get angry? Jealous? Would he be indifferent, shrug it off, and laugh? Would he high five Sasuke for getting laid?

Or...

Would Naruto be disappointed in him?

Sasuke reached for his phone, which he'd set nearby after removing his clothes. He saw the two missed calls and read Naruto's text.

He hit the reply button.

 _If you're ready to go, I'll meet you on the front porch_

It didn't take long for Naruto to text back, and the notification sound made Sasuke's heartbeat skip for some reason.

 _Okay_

That's all he had to say?

Well, he wasn't going to read too much into it. He got up slowly and then sat on the side of the bed for a while, staring at his shirt, shoes, and socks on the floor.

This empty feeling was becoming almost unbearable, but, somehow, he felt this might be preferable to what was going to happen the instant he saw Naruto's face.

Sasuke got off of the bed, body feeling a little _tender_ in certain areas.

He finished getting dressed and, after making sure that the bed was neatly made and nothing was amiss, headed down the stairs to meet Naruto.

* * *

Naruto's mind was somewhere far off as he waited on the porch for Sasuke. There was a full moon out tonight.

He couldn't say he was feeling much of anything right now, although if there was a nearby window that he could break, he might've put his fist through it already. He shouldn't feel this way. He didn't own Sasuke. Sasuke was not his possession. He had no right to be angry or jealous.

If Sasuke didn't bring it up, he'd pretend that he didn't know anything, and if Sasuke _did_ bring it up, well... Naruto would try to be cool and supportive about it.

He was staring up at the moon when he felt a presence behind him. Naruto closed his eyes.

"Ready to go?" He asked, trying to keep his voice neutral.

Naruto heard Sasuke's footsteps as he approached. He didn't say anything for a while, so Naruto turned around to face him. Sasuke's expression would've been pretty unreadable to most people, but he wasn't most people. Well, Naruto didn't have to guess any longer. Sasuke had definitely -

 _Don't show it, Naruto. Don't fucking let it show on your face. Don't make him feel bad for what he should've been doing all along._

It took a lot of willpower, especially after noticing the dark marks on Sasuke's neck, but he managed a smile.

"I hope you're sober enough to drive us," he said cheerfully.

"I'm fine," Sasuke replied, "I've... definitely sobered up."

Naruto nodded and since he was unable to keep the smile on his face any longer, turned around and started walking toward the car. "Let's go, party pooper. I'll make sure to get you home so you can get your beauty rest."

He tucked his hands into his jacket pockets, biting his lip. Sasuke trailed behind him by a few steps, completely silent, though Naruto could feel his eyes on his back.

What, did Sasuke think he couldn't handle it if he told him?

How pathetic he must be. Getting fucking jealous over his gay best friend being able to get laid. Naruto felt ashamed. Until he was able to process this new aspect of their already fucked up friendship, he'd continue to act as if he didn't know. If he was skilled at anything, it was knowing how to pretend he was happy when, inside, he wanted to turn the whole world upside down.

* * *

Because he was driving, Sasuke had something else to focus on. He thought Naruto seemed quieter than usual, but when he asked if anything was wrong, Naruto told him he'd had too much to drink. Right now, Naruto had his head resting against the window and appeared to be sleeping. Before this all happened, he'd had every intention of spending the night at Naruto's place. Minato wasn't going to be there, as was the norm. He was on a business trip pretty much every other weekend. Was it right to stay there, or should he drive back home after dropping him off? On the other hand, if Naruto wasn't feeling well, maybe he should stick close to him. The idea of Naruto relying on him, needing him... it made him want to stay. It was so selfish, he knew, but he couldn't help himself. He wanted to have his cake and eat it, too.

And if Naruto had no idea what Sasuke had done, then who's to say he couldn't?

It would be terrible to touch Naruto after doing all of that with someone else.

But, he didn't feel satisfied either. In fact, the more he thought about it, the more he wanted to throw Naruto on the bed and make him moan. He wanted Naruto to cry his name as he came. He wanted to fill his brain with images of Naruto's face while he was in ecstasy. Shit. He was such a terrible person. He was getting hard just thinking about it.

"Naruto," he said, unsure if the other teen was awake.

"...Yeah?"

"Is it still okay if I stay at your place tonight?"

"Uh...sure. I guess. Why wouldn't it be?"

Sasuke glanced at him. "Unless you don't want me to."

"...Whatever you want."

"That's what I want."

"Then...okay."

Sasuke set his eyes back on the road, feeling a thrill comparable to a man who's been able to get away with a crime. It's not as if he ever claimed to be a good person. That was Naruto's job. So, if there were times Sasuke wanted to take what he could get, it would be naïve to let the opportunity go to waste. What Naruto didn't know wouldn't hurt him... right?

Especially after Sasuke had watched _him_ be with other people. While at school, Naruto held hands with, embraced, and kissed girls. It's not like Sasuke didn't know what else went on either. For putting up with that, he deserved this one tiny thing. This one, twisted desire to hurt Naruto and then to love him unconditionally. That's what Naruto deserved for being drawn to a twisted person like himself. If he knew Sasuke at all, he would've seen this coming.

* * *

When they arrived at the apartment, the first thing Sasuke did was head for the shower. Alone and sulking, Naruto sat in front of the TV, trying not to think about the reason why he needed a shower in the first place.

Naruto flipped through the channels mindlessly, finally ending up on some documentary about Tibet on the History channel. It made him remember this weird thing from his childhood when he thought being a monk might be cool. It was probably the orange robes they wore that he liked. Well, not really. It was the solitude and peace that fascinated him. What would it be like to be that content and to not really care about things or be weighed down by selfish and shallow emotions?

It didn't feel like it was very long before Sasuke rejoined him. He took a seat on the couch, still drying his hair with a towel. He'd borrowed a pair of sweatpants from Naruto's dresser. Naruto could smell his soap and shampoo all over him. The marks on his neck were pretty fucking obvious.

Had he not given any thought at all to Naruto noticing them, or was it that Sasuke wanted him to know? He started to feel sick to his stomach again.

"Shower's free if you want it," Sasuke said.

"Ah."

"What are you watching?"

"TV."

"Naruto."

Naruto tore his eyes away from the television to look at him.

"What's up with you?"

He wondered how Sasuke could be this cool about it and guessed that what went on between the two of them didn't matter much, after all. What were they? What _was_ their relationship to one another? Was he just a way for Sasuke to gain sexual experience?

"I think I'm gonna go to bed," Naruto said, getting to his feet. He needed to be anywhere but here right now.

As he attempted his escape, Sasuke caught him by the wrist.

"Naruto."

"Don't - " He started to say _Don't say my name like that_.

Naruto took in a breath and smiled as convincingly as he could.

"I guess I'm more tired than I realized. Heh."

"Should I sleep on the couch?"

That hurt. Why did that hurt?

"Uh, if you want." He scratched the back of his head. "If you wanna stay up and watch TV. Just... do whatever."

"You're acting strange."

"I think it's the pot," he lied. "It didn't seem right."

"You smoked pot?"

"Er, yeah. There were these people in the basement. I would've told you about it, but it sort of knocked me on my ass for a while."

"You should be more careful." Sasuke let go of his wrist, and Naruto started rubbing where he still felt heat from the touch. "You never know what some people put in that stuff."

"Don't worry," he said. "I can take care of myself."

"I've seen evidence that proves otherwise."

"Maybe you should," he said, "Sleep on the couch tonight. I might get sick in the middle of the night, so I wouldn't wanna barf on you."

"No." Sasuke made a face. "I suppose that wouldn't be very pleasant. Well, if you're sure."

He wasn't sure. He wanted Sasuke to fight him on it.

"Okay, well. ...Goodnight."

Naruto waved, knowing he sounded awkward as fuck. He walked with a hurried step to his bedroom. He wasn't feeling up to taking a shower, so he stripped down to his boxers and collapsed on the felt so foolish as he pulled one of the pillows to him and bit back a frustrated growl. It wasn't so much the jealousy, though that continued to pulse and throb in the background of everything. It was... this fear of abandonment. That Sasuke was tired of him, or that he didn't want to be friends anymore. Naruto couldn't help thinking about it even knowing from where those fears stemmed. It hurt. It hurt so much. It hurt like -

Great. He was about to cry now. How much more lame could he get tonight? Jealous his own best friend was getting what was due him, and then selfishly wanting to keep him chained to his side so that he wouldn't be left alone. If anything, he deserved to feel miserable. Maybe half a year ago he never should've let them cross that line to begin with. After all, it was Naruto who'd boldly declared it wasn't a big deal and that he was going with the flow and doing what he wanted.

But what did Sasuke want?

Maybe he really was keeping Sasuke from doing what a gay teenage boy should be doing. If he was only making it harder for Sasuke to be who he needed to be, he should seriously consider stepping aside. At least it solidified the need for Naruto to go to college somewhere else. What if he was more dependent upon their friendship than Sasuke was? Maybe he already thought Naruto was too clingy and co-dependent.

"Tch." Naruto clenched his fist as he buried his face in the pillow. "You're pathetic. You selfish, pathetic, needy prick."

He hated himself... so much.

Yet, at the same time, he wanted so badly for Sasuke to come in here and tell him it was all okay. He wanted Sasuke's reassurance. Naruto wanted to feel needed by someone. He wanted to feel needed by someone so his existence in this world mattered… went noticed, and so that he didn't have to feel like once you died, there was nothing and no trace of that person anymore.

Being with Sasuke... could make him feel alive and special.

Had whoever Sasuke was with felt that way, too? Did they have any idea what they had in being allowed to do that with him? Did they appreciate Sasuke's touch or the way he kissed? Did they feel that power and passion that shifted below the surface? That Sasuke was this wonderful enigma who could draw you in and burn you if you so much as -

What the hell was wrong with him?

Why was he pining over his best friend like a lovesick teenage girl?

Sick.

Naruto took in a deep breath. He just needed to put it out of his mind. He should go to sleep and stop thinking about it. Sasuke was probably feeling pretty damn good about it, too. That he'd been able to get some action tonight without having to wait on Naruto.

He just needed to stop feeling sorry for himself and start feeling happy that Sasuke's love life was evolving without his interference.

* * *

Sasuke watched the TV for a while but grew restless as time went on. He thought when he offered to take the couch that Naruto would argue with him like he usually did. Something was definitely up with him. Or, maybe Naruto really wasn't feeling well. In that case, he should check on him. He turned off the TV and walked toward the hall. Naruto's bedroom door was open, though it was dark inside. He stood in the doorway, unable to summon that conviction he'd felt in the car. Instead, the guilt was beginning to creep its way in until he became paranoid. What if Naruto could tell? What if he already knew?

He drew closer to the bed. Naruto was curled up on one side, and Sasuke crawled onto the other. He sat next to Naruto's prone form, trying to figure out whether he was really asleep. Normally, Sasuke wouldn't hesitate, but he couldn't get himself to do what he really wanted, which was to get under the covers with Naruto, touch him, hold him, and talk like they always did. It occurred to him what tonight's experimentation had lacked: intimacy. He had that with Naruto even without them being in a romantic relationship.

Is that why he felt guilty? It's true that they didn't impose rules on one another. To be fair, Naruto had always been clear that if he was to date, he wouldn't do anything with Sasuke during that time. Naruto held fast to that, and Sasuke just had to find a way to deal with it. But when Naruto wasn't dating anyone, he messed around only with Sasuke.

So, in a way, Sasuke was the first one to break that unspoken rule. Or was he overthinking it, and Naruto never looked at things that way? No, he knew. Naruto was loyal. It's why he refused to screw around with Sasuke while he had a girlfriend. So, when Naruto didn't have a girlfriend, he was, basically, loyal to Sasuke. And Sasuke had just fucked around with someone else during the time that was meant to be theirs. If Naruto did know, how did he feel about it? If he knew, why hadn't he said anything?

Sasuke touched Naruto on the shoulder. "Naruto."

He didn't wake or respond, so he shook him harder this time until he began to feel desperate for Naruto to wake.

"Wh-what is it?" Naruto asked, halfway up in the bed and squinting at him. "Sasuke? What's wrong?"

"I cheated," he blurted.

"Huh?"

"I cheated."

Naruto rubbed at his eyes, sitting up all the way. "What the hell are you talkin' about?"

"You don't know?

"I don't know what you're talkin' about, no. You cheated at what?"

So, Naruto _didn't_ know?

He looked away, disappointed somehow. "Nevermind."

Some time passed before the sheets rustled, gaining his attention, and causing him to glance at Naruto again.

"Is this about… tonight?" Naruto asked quietly as he drew his knees to his chest and wrapped his arms around them. "You don't have to explain."

Sasuke's heart began to pound. "So, you _do_ know?"

"I - " Naruto, with a sigh, scratched the back of his head. "I mean… yeah. Sorry. I wasn't sure if I was supposed to say anything, but when I went to find you, and I was callin' you, I heard your ringtone comin' from one of the occupied bedrooms. So. Yeah."

"You don't… have any questions?"

Naruto's eyes narrowed. "What do you want me to say?"

"I…" What did he want Naruto to say? "Tell me it doesn't bother you."

"Okay." Naruto pressed his lips together. "It doesn't bother me."

"You're lying."

"Listen, if you got me up just to tell me that you fucked around with another guy, it's none of my business. We aren't dating. In fact, I should be happy for you. I'm surprised, that's all, that you didn't care about hookin' up with some random dude at a house party when you're always so paranoid about bein' caught."

"I'm not _paranoid_ ," he argued.

He was worried about the annoyance in Naruto's tone. He also felt a rising panic that Naruto had been outside the door at the time.

"Do you want me to congratulate you, or what? Congratulations on getting laid. Good for you. Now, can I go back to sleep?"

"You're angry."

"I'm not angry. I'm tired." Naruto flopped back down in his bed.

"I want to talk about this."

"That's unusual for you, isn't it?" Naruto mumbled. "Besides, I _don't_ want to talk about it. I'm happy for you, but I'd rather you spare me the details."

"Naruto," he said and reached for his shoulder, but Naruto jerked away.

That… scared him. Was Naruto that mad? He didn't seem jealous. He seemed pissed.

"You're disappointed in me," he said.

"Sasuke. You're a big boy. You're free to do what you want."

"Is that so?" Sasuke grabbed Naruto and rolled him over so that he would actually look at him. "Tell me what you're thinking."

"I won't. It doesn't matter."

"Of course it matters. It always matters to me what you think."

"Does it? Well, it shouldn't."

"Why are you being an asshole?"

"Because I don't wanna hear about the details of your sex life!" Naruto shouted.

Sasuke searched his face. "Are you… jealous? Naruto, you dated other people this summer. You can't - "

"I know, okay! That's why I'm not sayin' anything. I guess I figured - " But, he stopped and shook his head.

"You figured what?"

Naruto averted his gaze. "Nothing. Could you just - leave me alone? We can talk about this in the morning if you really want, but I don't wanna talk about it now."

"Why does everything always have to be on your terms?"

Naruto snorted. "You can really say that after tonight? You're such a dick. I'm goin' to bed. You can sleep on the couch."

"Are you punishing me for sleeping with someone else?"

"Ah, okay. So you went that far? That's good. Good for you. I'm goin' to bed now." Naruto rolled over and dragged one of the pillows on top of his head.

Sasuke snatched it off and threw it across the room. "What does it matter how far I went with him? It's not like you and I ever go that far."

"Oh, so now this is my fault? I don't put out, so you're cool with fucking another guy while I'm in the same house?"

"I had to be cool with you fucking your little girlfriends and then flaunting that shit in front of me at school while knowing how I feel!"

"What?" Naruto sounded surprised, which irritated him.

"You heard me. You're right. I'll give you what you want. I'd rather go sleep on the couch than share this bed with you."

He got up and left, angry and frustrated. Sasuke made it as far as the door before he was yanked by the arm and shoved back toward the bed. The next thing he knew, Naruto was on all fours above him.

"Go ahead then," Naruto said, sounding a little threatening. "You wanna talk about it we'll talk. Tell me all the details."

"You don't mean that."

"Sure I do. Who was it? Anyone I'd know?"

"It's doubtful."

"What did he look like?"

"Naruto - "

"Shut up. This is what you said you wanted, Sasuke. I'll act like I'm interested, so let's do this. What did he look like?"

Sasuke attempted a glare even though this was making his blood rush. Naruto brought his face even closer. He could smell the alcohol on his breath.

"I'd rather not say," he replied.

"Are you scared to tell me?"

"No, I - " Sasuke turned his head to the side, trying to avoid that accusatory look of Naruto's. "He looked like Yahiko, I guess."

"Why tonight? I don't get it."

"Because…" He looked up at Naruto, searching him. What could he say?

 _Because you weren't paying enough attention to me lately? Because you were flirting with girls in front of me tonight? Because I was horny and knew I couldn't have that with you, so I got it from someone else who was willing? Because having sex with another guy meant I could imagine what it would feel like if I was with you?_

"Not going to finish what you were saying?" Naruto nearly growled.

It was fucked up, but he was starting to get excited being pinned down by Naruto when he was this furious. Not to mention a part of him wanted to believe there was some jealousy mixed in with all of that anger. Even though his mind was saying _Then claim me_ , what came out was:

"You don't own me."

Naruto glared. "I _know_ that. You think I don't know that?"

"Then why are you so mad?"

"Because you lied to me."

"I didn't lie to you."

"You had no intention of telling me, did you? Did you figure I'd be too stupid to notice? Do you think after all of the times that we've fucked around that I wouldn't know? Even if I hadn't heard your phone, I would've figured it out by that look on your face. Although those bruises on your neck gave it away pretty damn fast. You're not nearly as sneaky as you think, Sasuke, you bastard."

Sasuke felt the spot on his neck that was already sore and tender. It didn't make him feel great, knowing he had someone else's mark on him. If their positions were reversed, he wouldn't be handling this nearly as calmly as Naruto and Naruto _was not_ calm.

"I guess like with you," he said, knowing it was a half-lie, "I wanted to spare your feelings. You never talked about what you did with your girlfriends, so I thought I'd offer you the same courtesy."

"Well, then you fucked up because you just came into _my_ bed to tell me you cheated. And what the hell is that supposed to mean anyway? We're not dating, so if you have it in your head that you _cheated_ on me then you need a fucking reality check!"

Sasuke pushed him off, and when Naruto was on his back, scrambled on top of him. He pinned Naruto's wrists to the mattress so that he would stop moving.

"What is it you really want to hear, Naruto? Would it make you feel better to know that I thought of you the entire time? That I constantly compared him to you and how it was a million times better when it's just the two of us? So, what? It's not like you thought of me when you were with those girls this summer!"

"I told you before I started dating them that I would stay loyal to the person I'm with at the time," Naruto argued, struggling beneath his weight. "We talked about it several times. Don't act like I wasn't aware of how it could make you feel. You've always been free to do what you want. I've never tried to hold you back."

"Fine, then maybe from now on I shouldn't hold back at all."

"Great," said Naruto. "Get a boyfriend then. Fuck his brains out. I don't care."

"Clearly you do care. By the way." Sasuke, with a smirk, leaned over him so that he could rest his elbows on either side of Naruto's head. "Why are you getting excited at a time like this, hm? You think I can't feel that? That's pretty twisted, Naruto. Telling me to go fuck a whole truckload of whoever I want while you're getting hard underneath me. Talk about mixed signals."

"Shut up," Naruto spat. "And I never told you to go fuck a whole truckload of guys. Jesus, Sasuke. Stop bein' such a goddam baby all of the time. How the hell are you gonna have a boyfriend if you don't even have the balls to come out to anyone but me, your brother, and all his gay friends?"

"I'm tired of having that conversation with you."

"Well maybe _I'm_ tired of - " Naruto shut his mouth before finishing.

"Say it. What? You're tired of _me_?"

Naruto glared in place of an answer.

"If that's how you feel, then I'm gone." Sasuke got off of him in a hurry. If Naruto didn't want him around, then fine.

He made it to the living room before Naruto took him by surprise by tackling him from behind. It was dark, and they both lost their footing. They ended up on the floor, rolling around on top of each other until he ended up beneath Naruto on the rug, arms forcibly restrained.

"What do you want?" Naruto growled. "Should we go at it right here? Will that satisfy you? Then let's have sex."

"I don't want to have sex with you."

They both knew that was a lie. Sasuke was rock hard from the mere suggestion.

Naruto started to undo the tie on his sweatpants with one hand. "Let's do it. You want to top someone? Assuming you didn't fuck this guy tonight, then I'll be your first."

"Stop it."

"I know you can go more than once tonight. We've done that plenty. I've made you come multiple times in less than an hour, so I know you can get it up." Naruto slid a hand beneath the waistband of his underwear and wrapped his hot fingers around him.

This was it. What he'd been hoping would happen if Naruto found out. This was what he'd wanted all along. He wanted Naruto so badly, any way that he could get him.

"You're leaking all over my fingers, Sasuke," Naruto said, so close to him that their breath mingled. "I hope you can hold out long enough to get inside of me."

Fuck.

His eyes nearly rolled back into his head.

"Naruto," he said without much conviction, "Stop it."

Naruto attached his lips to that spot on his neck, over the bruise. He sucked hard until Sasuke cried out.

"Touch me already."

At Naruto's command, he threw his arms around him and kissed him with everything he had. Sasuke slid his hands inside Naruto's boxers, grabbing hold of his ass as he pressed their hips together. He didn't waste time in separating him and sliding a finger along his crack. Using the tip, he circled Naruto's hole. The hand stroking him started to slow as the anticipation built. They hadn't done anything like this before. Naruto held his breath; Sasuke did, too. He watched the look on Naruto's face as he pushed the finger inside of him. Naruto opened his mouth in a silent moan while sliding down on it. He could feel Naruto clenching around him. It was hard not to think about having this tight grip around his cock. All he could imagine was being inside Naruto, deep in him, having him all to himself, bringing him off, and making him his and his alone.

At this rate, he wouldn't last. This little bit of progress was enough to make all coherent thought fly out of his brain. It was a gamble, but Sasuke didn't ask permission when he started to insert a second finger. Naruto didn't protest, though he let out a grunt from Sasuke stretching him. He shifted around in Sasuke's lap and then forced himself all of the way down onto the two fingers.

"Ride me," Sasuke whispered, his desire reaching desperate levels.

With his eyes shut, Naruto took his fingers like it wasn't his first time. Sasuke grabbed hold of his bouncing cock and stroked it for him in the quick and dirty way he knew Naruto liked.

"Sasuke," Naruto moaned. "Sasuke," he said again, squeezing around his fingers. "Say something."

Sasuke lifted himself up on his elbows, watching the way his fingers disappeared into him. "If this is the closest I can get to you coming with me inside you, I want it."

Naruto groaned again, his body twisting erotically on top of him, driving down on his fingers while rocking into Sasuke's fist.

"Kiss me, Naruto," he demanded.

Naruto kissed him wetly, both of their mouths wide open so that their tongues could touch for the first time. While he worked Naruto over with his hands, he felt the first spurt of cum between his fingers. Naruto shouted out so loudly there was no way he didn't wake the neighbors.

"Jesus, Naruto, keep quiet," Sasuke hushed him, but by then it was over.

Naruto buried his face in Sasuke's neck, hips shifting up and down a few more times before he finally came to a stop and his body slumped on top of him. His weight was heavy, but so warm against his body. Sasuke, rather blown away by what just happened, remained in a rather precarious state of arousal. If Naruto so much as breathed on him, he'd come without even being touched. He pulled his two fingers out and wrapped his arms around Naruto, holding him.

"I…," how badly did he want to say this, _I love you, Naruto_.

He couldn't get out the words even though his heart and thoughts were filled with Naruto.

The hurt was almost physical as he ached for this.

Naruto, meanwhile, nuzzled at his neck and kissed at his throat. He wasn't in any hurry to get out of Sasuke's arms.

Sasuke gazed at the ceiling. He could die right now. He could die a very happy man. What happened earlier tonight at the party couldn't even compare to the satisfaction this brought him.

"Fuck," he said, knowing this was bad.

"I guess we didn't make it to that part," Naruto replied.

Sasuke rubbed his back, for once thankful about his friend's tendency toward obliviousness. "I wouldn't have been able to last."

"You're still hard." Naruto began moving down his body. "I'll take care of it."

Sasuke pulled him back up. "No."

He was already struggling to fight off a premature finish from having Naruto on top of him like this. It didn't help that he kept replaying that look on Naruto's face in his mind, or recalling the feel of him riding his fingers.

"Don't move or I'll lose it right now. Let me calm down first."

"Okay." Naruto remained obediently still. "Let me know when I can move. Not that I'm in any better shape. That one almost hurt, I came so hard."

"Yeah." He smirked. "Don't be surprised if your neighbors call and complain tomorrow."

"Like I care."

"You will if your dad hears about it."

"Hmm." Naruto's lips pressed to one side of his throat - over that bruise - and then he licked a wet stripe up Sasuke's neck.

He shuddered beneath him. "Don't."

"That would be hot," Naruto said in that sexy bedroom voice of his. "If I could make you come without even touching you."

"I'd rather come while _being_ able to touch you."

"Fine. I'll give you a few minutes, and then I'm gonna do what I want."

* * *

Naruto attempted to remain still, but it was difficult for him. What they'd just done - how he'd let Sasuke fuck him with his fingers like that - it made him wonder why they didn't go all the way at this point. The arguing from before had excited him, and now that they'd come this far and Sasuke was this hard, he had an urge to satisfy him. Or, did he feel like he needed to compete with the unknown man from earlier who'd touched Sasuke this way? Every time he thought about it, it pissed him off all over again even if that didn't make any rational sense.

"Sasuke," he said, breathing heavily against his neck. "Do you want to do more? ...With me?"

Sasuke's hand moved along the line of his spine. He sighed next to Naruto's ear. "That's a stupid question."

"You're hard, and I'm... I've gotta be a little ready to go, right? Back there?"

Sasuke snorted at him, but then he pressed his hand to Naruto's cheek and guided him into a long, passionate kiss that, as it deepened, started to make the thoughts and feelings he was having toward Sasuke and their messed up friendship blur even more. When Sasuke grabbed his asscheeks and squeezed them apart, he let out a low moan.

"Stop it." Sasuke broke their kiss to bite his bottom lip.

"I can't help it," Naruto murmured against his jaw. "I'm feeling slutty."

"Please." Sasuke let his head drop on the rug. "Stop talking."

He couldn't stop, though. He was feeling… territorial and strange.

"Why did you really hook up with someone else tonight?" Naruto sat up so that he could yank his boxers past his knees, and then lay on top of him again. "Don't stop touching me."

"I'm wondering that very same thing right now." Sasuke began running his hands over him again - down his back and sides, over his ass and thighs... and then he strayed to Naruto's crack, tracing it with his finger.

Naruto found he liked the way Sasuke's face looked as he struggled to keep his desire at bay. Even though he liked it even more when Sasuke let himself go. Only he, at least up until tonight, really got to see this side of his best friend.

"Do you think things would change that much between us if we went all the way?"

Sasuke opened his eyes to regard him. "Don't you?"

"I'm feeling weird right now... so I don't know for sure."

"Hm."

"What do you want, Sasuke?"

He felt the tip of Sasuke's finger at his hole.

"You," Sasuke answered. "I've always wanted you."

"What if for tonight we pretended - "

"I don't want to pretend," Sasuke said before he could finish.

"I don't want us to play games like this."

"Games?"

"You," Naruto stared at the mark on his neck, "Fucking other guys in front of me and making me feel this way."

"What way?"

He pressed his lips to Sasuke's skin. "Jealous."

"I didn't _fuck_ anybody in front of you," Sasuke replied calmly. "Don't you think it's fair that if you've been having sex, that I should be able to? I didn't know him. I'll never see him again. I didn't ask his name, and I didn't give him mine. It was _just_ sex."

"Isn't that all we do… but without the, _you know_?"

"No." Sasuke didn't elaborate, which left him wondering all kinds of things.

Naruto started having odd thoughts as he considered what happened tonight. Even this, the way Sasuke was touching him now, felt too intimate. He thought maybe for one night they could put aside all of their hang-ups about having sex. What would be the big deal? When they'd first met, Naruto had carelessly offered to be a part of Sasuke's first experience topping another guy, especially if it meant he wasn't hooking up with Itachi's friends.

He knew why they hadn't crossed that line, though. They'd be in the same situation as before. Naruto wasn't gay, he knew he was attracted to women, but he cared about Sasuke. He's the only guy he'd ever felt feelings of attraction toward. Still. Naruto liked the idea of being with someone who would go all in when it came to a relationship, so the idea of thinking about Sasuke _that_ way wasn't possible until he was ready to come out. Naruto didn't know exactly how Sasuke felt about it, but if all he wanted was sex (with other people), maybe he should put an end to stuff like this that made it confusing and difficult for either of them to move on to a real relationship.

"What is it we're doing, Sasuke? If you want to have sex with men because you can't do it with me, maybe we shouldn't be doing this stuff anymore. Maybe this should be the last time."

"Is that some kind of ultimatum?" Sasuke sat up and repositioned Naruto in his lap.

"Things are getting blurry." Naruto put both arms around Sasuke's neck.

He gave Naruto a long look he couldn't place before unexpectedly grabbing him by the arms and rolling them over so that Sasuke was the one on top now. "Things were already blurry."

Without warning, he hooked his arms under Naruto's knees and pushed his legs and ass into the air. "Are you doing that thing you do, Naruto? When you leave it to me to decide what's best for the both of us? Or, should I say... for you?"

"I don't know what I'm doing," he confessed.

Sasuke looked so serious as Naruto re-settled his arms around the boy's neck. He almost felt guilty that he didn't want this to stop, whatever it was they had going on between them. He loved Sasuke as a friend, but if they kept doing this, one or both of them was going to end up getting hurt. If Sasuke came to him one day and confided that he'd finally topped someone, would he be jealous? Would he be envious of that person? Naruto was cynical when it came to love, but having sex with Sasuke might end up being confusing for a whole list of reasons. He didn't know for sure if Sasuke felt the same because clearly he was fine doing it with just about anybody.

"What are you thinking, Naruto?" Sasuke gently threaded his fingers through his hair. "You look worried."

All he could do was shake his head. "I don't know what I'm thinking."

"You're so useless," Sasuke breathed against his skin. "Why are you tempting me?"

"Because. I want you to be happy." He said it as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"I am happy." Sasuke kissed across his collarbone. "If you told me not to get with anyone else, I wouldn't. I'd even put up with your occasional girlfriends. You'd only have to say the word."

He pressed a hand to Sasuke's chest, not entirely sure if he could believe him. "You're teasing me. Don't say things like that."

"I'm not teasing." Sasuke placed a kiss to his chin. "I'm serious." He started tracing the line of Naruto's jaw with his tongue.

Why was it always so hard to say no to him?

Since things had already progressed this far, they both reached for Sasuke's sweatpants at the same time and pulled them down. The pants got thrown off to the side, and then Sasuke was on him again, slipping his arms under his knees and bending his body so that Naruto could feel his erection sliding between his asscheeks. He must've made a face because Sasuke smirked.

"I have _some_ restraint," he told Naruto. "Don't worry. I won't put it in, as much as I want to."

Maybe it was because of tonight, but being under Sasuke in this particular position made him feel uncertain and even submissive. As Sasuke proceeded to rub against him, Naruto wound an arm around his waist to keep him in place. He'd leave it up to Sasuke to decide since he trusted him.

"On a scale of 1 to 10," Sasuke murmured near his ear, "How jealous were you?"

"Twenty. Easily," he replied.

Slowing their pace, Sasuke cupped his cheek. There was such a soft look in his eyes, too. "I suppose it would be too much to ask it's because you've finally fallen in love with me?"

Naruto's eyes widened. "Sasuke..."

"Don't give me that look. I'm only kidding."

Naruto wasn't so sure, but before he could question him, he buried his face in Naruto's neck and started thrusting faster. It was funny to think that if Sasuke pushed in instead of sliding through, that everything between them would change forever. Honestly, if their positions were reversed, Naruto didn't think he could restrain himself like this.

In order to clear his head, he closed his eyes for a second. When he opened them, he caught Sasuke watching himself - moving, rubbing, and sliding between his asscheeks.

"Sasuke," he said, understanding that feeling of wanting to be inside the other person, "If you want to - "

"I'm fine," Sasuke growled and, almost as a reprimand, bit him hard on the neck.

Naruto cried out. "Dammit, Sasuke."

"I'm close," Sasuke whispered near his ear.

He barely had time to register his words before Sasuke sat back on his knees and dragged Naruto with him. Leaning over his body, Sasuke took his own cock in hand and fisted it. Naruto kept his eyes trained on him while Sasuke jerked himself off over his stomach. Seeing how Sasuke looked as he was about to come was always such a fucking turn-on for him. Naruto motioned for him to come closer, and when he did, was able to hook his thumb inside the corner of Sasuke's mouth. Their eyes locked as he sucked on it like he would Naruto's cock and started to come. Before he finished, he took hold of Naruto and stroked them off together. Naruto squirmed beneath him, not having realized how close he was just from watching Sasuke get off.

"Don't hold back, Naruto. Let me hear you."

Sasuke, moving on top of him, latched onto his neck, and Naruto moaned, not caring that there was a possibility his dad could come home early and walk in on two naked teenage boys writhing and rubbing against each other on the living room floor.

"Make me come," he panted. "Make me come, Sasuke. Right now."

Sasuke grunted. "I was planning on it."

He searched out Naruto's mouth, and while they kissed, Naruto came for the second time. He rocked savagely into his best friend's tight grip, and gave himself up at the last second to thoughts of Sasuke owning him, possessing him, demanding his pleasure -

"Sasu _ke_ ," he moaned loudly as his climax hit.

Sasuke held him tightly, body trembling against his. "Naruto."

After a few minutes of trying to catch their breath, Sasuke began to drop kisses on his chest and neck. He was feeling emotionally drained and physically exhausted. All he wanted to do was get into bed and maybe cuddle a little if Sasuke would let him get away with it.

"I get to be the big spoon tonight," said Sasuke.

Naruto chuckled tiredly. "Mind reader."

"Mmm. Time to get up." Sasuke moved off of him and got to his feet. He held out his hand.

Naruto took it and let himself be pulled up. "Your hair's bein' weird."

Sasuke pointed. "You have cum all over your stomach."

He slapped his hand away. "S'not polite to point, bastard. You should've licked it off."

"More like I should've taken a picture."

"Ha, no. Your brother would find them for sure."

He grabbed Sasuke's hand and led him to the bathroom. They were about a foot away from the door when Sasuke abruptly stopped and pinned him to the wall.

"What's this?" Naruto asked.

Sasuke gave him a rather intense look.

"Sasuke?"

"If I - "

Sasuke stopped to search him again only to shake his head.

"Nevermind. You stink. Let's go."

He took Naruto's hand and dragged him the rest of the way. Once they were in the bathroom, Naruto wondered what he'd been about to say. He brushed his teeth while Sasuke turned on the shower and found them some towels.

"It's ready," said Sasuke. "And since I'm here, you won't do anything dumb like pass out and get pneumonia."

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Shut up. That happened that _one_ time, and it was because - Wait. Now that I think about it, that's one more time you fooled around on me. You let that guy kiss you while you were on stage."

"What are you doing, Naruto?" Sasuke pulled him into the shower and under the hot spray of water. "You're acting like a jealous boyfriend."

He gave Naruto this look that made his heart start to pound and then, taking his face in his hands, leaned in for a kiss that had him doubting his sexuality for the millionth time.

"Sasuke," he said, reaching for his hand and holding onto it. "I love you. You know?"

Sasuke's eyes widened the slightest bit, and then he smirked. "I know. But, you're still the little spoon tonight. No amount of smooth talking is going to change my mind."

Naruto snorted at his arrogance. "God, you're such an asshole."

"So you love an asshole. What does that make you?"

"All things considered, I'd say I'm lucky to have met you. Even if you cheat on me from time to time."

Sasuke traced his top lip with a finger. "You really are acting like a jealous boyfriend. If you keep it up, I might have to make you come a third time."

"No way." He smiled, though. "Fine. I'm not jealous. I'm simply concerned for your well-being. I hope you were at least safe about it."

"Safe enough."

Naruto made a face. "I'm being serious."

"Don't be serious." He slid his fingers through Naruto's hair. "That's going to turn me on again, too."

"Does everything I do turn you on?" He asked, meaning it as a joke.

"I wonder." Sasuke leaned in and gave him another kiss that felt incredibly tender and affectionate. Even after so much exertion, it still sent jolts of pleasure throughout his body.

After kissing and touching for a while, they finally got around to cleaning up. Sasuke even used the shampoo on him and lathered his hair. It felt so good to have his fingers massaging his head. He could've fallen asleep right there

"Alright," said Sasuke. "Let's get you into bed before you pass out and I have to carry your sorry ass."

Only because he was sleepy, he let Sasuke boss him around as they dried off. They also needed to make sure to remove all evidence of their activities from the living room. When they were back in Naruto's room they each put on a pair of his boxers and got into bed. He was lying on his right side as Sasuke shuffled up behind him and slipped an arm around his waist.

"Now this feels like how it should be," Sasuke said in his ear.

"I have this strange feeling," Naruto replied, "That you somehow meant for this to happen. If I wasn't so tired, I'd beat up on you a little."

"I don't know what you're talking about." Sasuke's hand shifted on his stomach, raising the hairs at the back of his neck.

"What am I gonna do with you?"

Sasuke's lips pressed to the back of his neck. He started humming something, low and soft.

He meant to ask him what the song was, but he was so tired.

Sasuke's hold on him tightened. "Goodnight, Naruto."

Naruto closed his eyes, knowing that this could be the calm before the storm but not caring. "G'night... Sasuke."


	3. Calm Before the Storm II

When Sasuke awoke in the morning, it was to find himself in an empty bed. He set his hand on the sheets, but they were cold, so Naruto must've been gone for a while. He closed his eyes, thinking about last night. Why did everything feel so less dramatic in the light of day? He hadn't even drank that much last night - Naruto did, however - but when he thought about sleeping with that DJ, he wished he could take it back.

It had been immature and selfish. He could rationalize it as teenage hormones, but he'd never held himself to the same standards as his peers. The fact was, he'd wanted to get back at Naruto in some way, and, for that, he felt ashamed and guilty. The plan ended up working, and if he'd really wanted to, he could've had sex with the one man he'd been pining over for the last six months. He was thankful he'd had enough sense not to try. That's not how he wanted it to happen if it was ever to happen.

If he was feeling this way, he wondered if Naruto had also woken with regrets.

He got up and sat on the edge of the bed, staring at some of the taped photos on Naruto's wall. Kushina Uzumaki was looking back at him.

"He's an adult," Sasuke told her, "All he had to do was say no."

Although, Sasuke was supposed to be the one looking out for him because Naruto didn't always look out for himself. Sasuke had taken advantage of that trust, which was making him feel fucking miserable. He should grovel, but his pride might get in the way of that.

Still. Naruto had admitted being jealous, hadn't he? That didn't mean he was in love with Sasuke. In fact, it may just be him marking his territory. Naruto was the type to get caught up in the moment, and Sasuke had used that to his advantage. He'd been manipulative. Not to say they never played games like these on occasion. When they fought, it was exciting, for the both of them. Naruto wasn't innocent by any means, but sleeping with someone while Naruto was in the same house... it was... well, frankly, it was tacky. It was beneath him, and his instinct was to apologize. But before he did that, he'd have to gauge what Naruto's mood was like first.

* * *

Naruto had been up for an hour already. The sky was overcast as he sat at the small table on the balcony. He had his foot up on the chair and his leg pulled to his chest. There was a mug of coffee in front of him that had gone cold 45 minutes ago. He'd been thinking. About life and the kind of decisions he kept making. He was trying to wrap his head around what happened last night, his thoughts, Sasuke's actions, and their relationship in general. He could admit that their friendship wasn't ordinary. They weren't friends with benefits. This was something different and more complicated. Besides his dad and Gaara, Sasuke was the closest person to him. If it wouldn't have sounded incestuous, he would've said that Sasuke was like a brother to him.

He knew they needed to have a conversation, but he was wondering if he was ready for it. This summer, when he'd decided to try dating, it wasn't because he was especially enamored with the girls. It was more... who knows. To see if he could? Because he liked relationships? But, mostly, he knew that if he didn't take that first step, Sasuke might be just fine remaining celibate until graduation. That wouldn't be fair to either of them. Not that Naruto was going to assume exactly how Sasuke felt about him. There were times he did think Sasuke might be in love with him, but if that were true, then Sasuke wouldn't make sex seem like it was no big deal. It didn't make sense in his head, because Naruto thought that if _he_ was in love with someone and in Sasuke's situation, then he'd do everything he could do be with that person. It was only speculative. Naruto was more of the belief that Sasuke might just be attached to him because Naruto knew his secret, because they'd already started a physical relationship, and because, well, they were friends, after all. They had a bond.

If he didn't know for sure what was going on in Sasuke's head - besides being a manipulative little bitch - then what did he feel about Sasuke?

That was a difficult question, too. Sasuke was a friend. He loved Sasuke. There wasn't anything he wouldn't do for him. The physical stuff could sometimes feel like more than that, but Naruto already understood that sex wasn't a mechanical act for him. He liked sex, but he couldn't be detached while doing it. He didn't think he could do what Sasuke had done. He especially didn't think he could do it to Sasuke, which is why he'd gone out of his way to talk to Sasuke about starting to date girls. Not that he gave Sasuke a choice in the matter, but he did say, _I am going to ask this girl out, and while we're together, we can't do what we've been doing, okay?_.

Sasuke had said he understood. He got that it might be difficult because they'd become used to sharing a bed, spending the night, and fooling around - although they never did anything at school. While they were there, people just thought they were good friends.

How could he explain how jealous and angry he got last night, though?

It had to be the shock. He was hurt Sasuke would do that right under his nose, and either Sasuke had been indifferent about it or he'd intentionally wanted to hurt Naruto. If it was the latter, could Naruto really blame him? Yeah, it made Sasuke a total asshole, but it wouldn't have directly hurt Naruto for him to have sex with someone else given the opportunity. He did wonder who it could've been, but it was probably best Sasuke didn't tell him. It worried him that Sasuke'd said the man resembled Yahiko. Naruto thought Sasuke still had feelings for his brother's friend, which was one more reason to dismiss the notion that Sasuke wanted anything more than attention last night. Maybe he'd wanted it from Naruto and because Naruto had been all over the place last night, he'd found the attention he needed from someone else.

That sounded like Sasuke, but Naruto couldn't get himself to be mad. Disappointed, maybe, but not mad. He wanted Sasuke to have sex and maybe find someone who'd be worthy enough that Sasuke would finally come out to his parents. No, he didn't think Fugaku would take it well, but he was pretty damn sure Mikoto had a good idea that her youngest son was gay. Everyone would stand behind him, and, the worst that could happen - well, if he got kicked out of the house, he could stay here. However, he was optimistic that wouldn't happen. He didn't expect Sasuke to come out at school or anything, but to just -

He wanted Sasuke to be able to grow and become the person Naruto knew he could be. Sasuke was the smartest in their class and always had top scores, he was incredibly talented when it came to music, and everyone liked him. Or, if they didn't like him it was because they were jealous. He could at least say Sasuke was respected. Even the guys on his varsity baseball team knew about Sasuke and what a genius he was. If there were events held at school, Sasuke was always behind them, organizing them so they went off without a hitch. Naruto felt proud when they walked side by side down the hallway. Maybe Sasuke wasn't aware of it, but people were always watching him and wanting his approval. He knew this, because Naruto felt the same. Sasuke had all of this potential, but he was also one of the most insecure people he'd ever met. It frustrated him at times, and sometimes he wished he could hit the fastforward button just to see what Sasuke would be like in the future. He didn't even need to go that far. He could already see it. Sasuke would be more successful than all of them. Maybe he'd become a famous musician or a producer, but it would be something really great. Naruto, on the other hand, had no idea what he wanted to do. He went with the flow. He expected to get a scholarship to play baseball, but his grades were average, and they were only that high because Sasuke would help him from time to time.

He did want Sasuke to be happy. He wanted him to come out and find a guy that made him happy and who appreciated him, but wasn't one of Itachi's friends. That group - Naruto did not approve! He wanted Sasuke to date a brain surgeon or rocket scientist.

He watched as a plane flew overhead, but turned when the door to the balcony opened.

The corner of Sasuke's mouth lifted briefly in greeting. It was a crisp fall morning, so he wore a pair of sweatpants and one of Naruto's favorite hoodies. His hair was a mess, and Naruto could see the very top of that hickey on his neck. It still irritated him to see it, and for more than a few seconds, he had an unfortunate flash of the moment when he'd been, ahem, riding Sasuke's fingers - and that was something he wasn't going to dwell on right this moment.

"Good morning," he said to Naruto. "I was wondering where you were."

"Not many places I could be."

Sasuke took a seat, but didn't say anything. Naruto continued gazing up at the sky.

"Did you sleep well?" He asked Sasuke.

"I think so. How's your head?"

"I took some Ibuprofen. I'm good, though. I rarely have hangovers."

"I know. You're always quick to recover."

Naruto glanced over at him. "Do you want breakfast?"

"Do you?"

"I'll make somethin' for us, yeah. I just wanted to get some fresh air."

"Ah."

It sort of irritated him that he could tell Sasuke had something on his mind, but he wouldn't say it. Naruto always had to drag it out of him, and he had his own things to think about, too.

"Do you wanna talk about it?" He asked, curling two of his fingers around the mug handle.

"Talk about it?"

He sighed. "About last night. It was... weird. I don't know if I can entirely blame the alcohol, so. I dunno. Thought you might wanna talk about it."

"...Which part of last night is it that you think we need to discuss?"

He shrugged. "Dunno. You sleeping with some stranger. I'm all for you gettin' some action, but I don't think one-night stands are the solution. Do you?"

"I wasn't really thinking it through, Naruto. It was spontaneous. I certainly didn't plan for it to happen."

"Okay. And... despite the fact that I," he thought about the words he wanted to use here, "Wasn't exactly _thrilled_ , I... you know. You should do what you want. I guess. I was surprised is all."

"I shouldn't have done that," Sasuke said, "I mean... knowing you were downstairs. I - "

Naruto waited patiently for him to finish.

"I'm sorry."

He raised an eyebrow. "What are you sorry for?"

"I feel like," Sasuke shifted on the chair, looking uncomfortable, "I might've done it to make you jealous. That wasn't the only reason, of course. I did, at the time, also want to - "

"You can say it," he said, realizing Sasuke was trying to be delicate with him, which was kind of annoying. Naruto could talk about this like an adult. He wasn't going to go all barbaric and drag Sasuke by the hair into his bedroom. Even though he could kind of admit he had done that last night. That was different. Naruto had a temper and an impulse control problem, so it wasn't his fault.

"It was just sex."

Naruto nodded. "I get it. You don't need to explain. Can't take it back now anyway. More than that, I feel like... we should talk about the stuff that happened after."

Sasuke started biting his lip as he looked out across the view. "I don't know what you want me to say."

"Don't get mad, but I think we should consider takin' a break from, you know, the physical stuff."

Sasuke turned to him, his eyes narrowed slightly. "You didn't enjoy last night? Because it seemed like you got off just fine."

"Sasuke," he said. "That's never been the problem. I want you to date guys. I do. But you won't because you're not ready to come out to your dad. Or, maybe you don't have a problem dating someone and sneaking around."

"Maybe I'm already dating someone, and you don't know."

"Who? That guy you screwed? You said it wasn't planned."

"It wasn't."

"Then why are you sayin' things like that. Do you get off on tryin' to make me jealous?"

Sasuke glared at him and didn't immediately respond.

"Well?"

"You like the drama," Sasuke told him. "You were as excited as I was after we fought. Don't play innocent."

"I'm not playin' anything," he replied coldly. "I just wanna have a single honest conversation with you so we don't end up hurting each other. I _do not_ want to hurt you. All things considered, you're my best friend, Sasuke. I have to confess that I'm wondering if I made a mistake that first week we met. I feel like - "

"Don't finish that sentence."

Naruto regarded him carefully. "Fine. We can't undo anything, so I suppose it's stupid to think about 'what if'."

Sasuke was still sending him a stony glare.

"I want to be honest with you," he explained.

"That's great," said Sasuke. "But I'm not _you_ as much as you try to make me be like you."

"Don't be an ass."

"Whatever." Sasuke crossed his arms, and decided to look in every direction but at him.

Naruto let out a long sigh and rubbed at the back of his head. "You're so smart, Sasuke. You tell me what we should do. In your ideal world, what would you like to happen? Do you want to date a guy? Do you just want to have sex? Do you _want_ to come out at some point? Are you even happy with how things are?"

"No."

He was so quick to answer that the surprise must've shown on his face.

"Then what would you do differently?" Naruto asked.

"I would've done last night differently."

"Would you? What part?"

Sasuke merely shook his head.

"I hope you don't mean the part where we could've gone all the way. I'm thankful you have better sense than me. I got caught up in the moment."

"How can you say something like that with such a straight face?" Sasuke asked, his tone cold, and Naruto didn't understand why.

He frowned. "I don't know what you mean."

"I can't be your babysitter forever. I certainly won't be your conscience."

"I never asked for you to babysit me. If anything, I should be the one babysittin' you. I leave you alone for a half hour, and you're picking up strangers. What if he tried to hurt you, or what if he had an STD or something?"

"The first part is ridiculous, and the second - I already told you we were safe."

"Fine. Great. Glad to hear it." He crossed his arms.

"Don't get mad at me and start setting rules when you continue to act like a jealous boyfriend."

"I'm not jealous," Naruto quickly defended, "I'm... concerned."

"Yeah, some honest conversation this is," Sasuke mumbled.

"Are you gonna be an asshole like this all morning?"

"I'm always an asshole," he replied, "Or aren't you aware?"

"I'm beginning to wonder," Naruto muttered, running a hand through his hair.

Sasuke was shaking his head. "You're such a hypocrite."

"How am I a hypocrite?"

"You like having my attention as much as I enjoy having yours. Regardless of our warped friendship, it's true that we both at least care about one another. Last night, you were jealous and you were angry, whether or not you want to admit it to yourself."

"I know I was jealous and angry," he admitted. "But I was mostly angry because I felt like you didn't give a shit about my feelings."

"Then the jealousy?"

"I... don't know. I'm - I have no claim on you." He rubbed his neck. "I guess... well, I should apologize then. There's no reason for me to get jealous. I was surprised and hurt, but you should do whatever you want. A little warning might be nice. I did spend some time lookin' for you. I feel stupid that I was textin' and callin' while you were in the middle of - _that_."

"Okay. Next time... I'll talk to you first. You told me when you were ready to date those girls, so I should've given you the same courtesy."

"You don't even have to tell me about it," said Naruto. "At least don't show up in my bed and tell me you cheated on me. It's already confusing enough as it is. You're gonna give me the wrong idea, though I guess I know what you meant. I get that was your way of apologizing."

"Naruto - "

Naruto looked at him, but Sasuke didn't finish. He seemed sad suddenly.

"You alright?" Naruto asked.

Sasuke slid his hands into the front pocket of the sweatshirt. "Just realizing the futility of life is all."

"Huh?"

"Nothing. I think I'm ready to eat something. Do you want to stay here or go out?"

"I dunno. I'm kind of in the mood to stay in. Should I make us something?"

"I'll help." He picked up Naruto's mug. "You're wasteful as usual."

Naruto tilted his head. "I only want what's best for you."

"You sound like my father." Sasuke met his gaze, and Naruto could feel the anger behind it, so he decided to drop the subject.

He got to his feet. They were standing close, and Sasuke kept looking at him as if he had a million things going on inside his mind. It was an attractive quality, too. Of course Naruto would want his attention. Having it was addicting and made Naruto feel like he was special somehow when he'd never really felt that way before. He kind of wanted to lean in and kiss him if it would erase that worry line forming between his brows. But he wasn't sure they should be doing things like that anymore. He should be firm, and it shouldn't take dating girls for him to try and push Sasuke in that direction. He should have this resolve on his own because it was in both of their best interests whether Sasuke wanted to hear it or not. Sasuke was gay, and Naruto was not.

For him, what they did together was - he didn't know exactly, but he wasn't _in_ love with Sasuke. He didn't think Sasuke was _in_ love with him, but maybe there was an infatuation because Naruto was an easy go to when it came to getting some action. He wouldn't say that's all there was to it. There was love and affection there, even intimacy, and Sasuke was a good person under all of that arrogance and indifference. So, he could understand why Sasuke was fond of coming back to him when he got horny. Naruto felt the same way at times, but now things were beginning to blur, which meant they needed to rethink how this was going to work between them from now on. At first it had been fun and exciting, and Naruto had encouraged it. Now it felt reckless, like they were playing with fire. He didn't want Sasuke to be hurt. He didn't want to distract him from what he could be.

"What's that look?" Sasuke asked. "You had that same look last night."

"I'm only thinking that... I want to shake you."

"Pardon?"

"Do you have any idea of your potential?"

Sasuke studied him. "Who are you? My guidance counselor?"

"No, I'm your friend, buttdart."

"'Buttdart'? That's a new one. No wonder you're averaging a 75 in English."

"Oh, shut up." He shoved him. "We can't all be geniuses."

Sasuke reached for a piece of his hair, but Naruto took hold of his wrist and made him let go. His heart hurt when he saw a brief look of confusion cross Sasuke's face, but they needed to cool things off for a while.

"I - it's not that things have changed," said Naruto. "But let's, you know, try for a normal friendship. For a while at least. I know we might slip up, but I really want you to be happy, Sasuke. I wish you could find someone you wanna date now. I don't want you to wake up one day five years from now and have any regrets."

"I already know what my regret will be when that day comes," said Sasuke, "But I've already accepted it."

He left Naruto's side and went to open the door.

Naruto wanted to ask him what he meant, but his stomach growled loudly, interrupting them.

"Come on," said Sasuke. "I'll make you some pancakes."

"I kinda want waffles."

"Fine, whatever you want. Just come inside before you catch a cold."

He went inside first, and left the door open for Naruto.

Naruto had this strange feeling in his chest. He touched it, holding his hand over his heart. He knew what he needed to do in order to make this right. There was no reason for things to change, well, except the whole fooling around with each other in secret thing. He wasn't stupid. That might still happen because they were dumb teenagers and being with Sasuke felt good and was fun. But, he was even more sure than ever before, that there would come a day where he may have to make a choice to put distance between them.

Sasuke might end up hating him for it, too. Could he bear Sasuke's hate like that? He hoped it wouldn't come to it, but if it did, he would sacrifice their friendship if it meant Sasuke could find happiness and do his own thing. Of course, that was only if Sasuke took it that far. It's not like it would be easy on Naruto either, and he wanted for them to always stay friends. He wanted Sasuke in his life. If he could stick Sasuke in his pocket and take him with to college, he'd consider it, but then they'd always end up in this same place. It was the only way, and if he started pulling away now, then maybe it wouldn't be so bad when that decision needed to be made? It wouldn't be fair to keep fucking around and one day Naruto was just like "see ya".

He sighed. Why did shit always have to be so complicated? If he was gay, then things would be different. He'd probably even be in love with Sasuke by now because who wouldn't be?

Life wasn't that simple, and Sasuke, if he _really_ wanted Naruto that way, he was the type to go through hell and back. So, it was pretty clear he didn't want Naruto that way but wanted a fuck buddy. Naruto - that's not what he wanted. He'd started to realize he wanted more than that some day. He wanted a relationship with someone he loved and who loved him in return, just as he was.

"Are you coming?" Sasuke came back to the door right as it began to sprinkle. "I'll let you pour the mix in the waffle iron while I fry the eggs."

Naruto's eyes started to sting for some reason. He let his head fall, and, although he was smiling, he felt so sad.

"Naruto?"

"I'm comin'." He walked to the door; Sasuke was in his way. "Do I need a password? Is this like a 'speak 'friend' and enter' deal?"

Sasuke opened the door wider. Naruto thought he was probably restraining himself from touching him. He kind of wanted that comfort, but it wouldn't be fair.

"Alright," he said. "I'll man the waffles since I like them a certain color of brown."

"As long as you don't open it every five seconds and let the heat out." He stood aside as Naruto entered the apartment, and then he closed the door.

"Hey, don't tell me how to live my life, Sasuke Uchiha."

"Why, you do it to me all of the time, Naruto Uzumaki."

Naruto followed him to the kitchen, wanting to push him around but keeping his hands to himself as he dutifully stood sentry by the waffle iron. He watched Sasuke's back as he stood in front of the stove, cooking their eggs to order.

These moments of domesticity were the ones that killed him the most.

"Hey, Sasuke?"

"What is it, idiot?" Sasuke didn't even turn around.

"Nothing."

"Lame."

"Do you have any gigs comin' up?" Naruto asked as he opened the waffle iron for the second time since he'd put the batter in.

"No one says gigs."

"I'm in the mood to see you play. Tell me the next time you have a show, alright?"

"Sure. If you really want."

"I want."

"I wonder if your dad will be home soon."

He shrugged. "Who knows? It's nice. Feels like I have my own place. Itachi's comin' home for Thanksgiving, right?"

"That's the plan," Sasuke answered. "Although you already knew that since you two are such good friends."

"He loves you, too, Sasuke. No need to be jealous. I wonder if that means I'll see Deidara and all them?"

"Probably."

Sasuke turned around. "Also, since we're trying to be more transparent with one another, I should warn you."

"Warn me?" He asked, opening the waffle iron again. "About what?"

"Yahiko may be coming to stay with us that weekend."

Naruto accidentally dropped the lid on his finger. "What?"

"I'm only saying so you don't feel like I purposely didn't tell you. Not that it matters." Sasuke went back to what he was doing.

"It's none of my business," he said stiffly, sticking his nose in the air. "Although, if he lays a hand on you while I'm around, I'm gonna break his kneecap."

"Don't be stupid."

Naruto hummed unhappily. "Okay, well. I'm sure Itachi will be there to guard what's left of your purity."

"I doubt there's any left to guard."

Despite himself, he chuckled. "Aaah. Hurry up with my breakfast, wench."

"Yes, master. I'll get right on that," Sasuke replied dryly.

"Tch. You'd probably like that kinda freaky stuff."

"Probably."

"Sasuke!"

"What, Naruto?"

Naruto glared at his back. "...Don't break my yolks."

"I won't. I learned how to do this from my brother. He's very good at frying eggs."

"Itachi is? Makes sense. Guy's good at everything."

Sasuke didn't answer, and when he finished frying their eggs, he set them on plates. By then, Naruto had a couple of decent waffles to offer them, and, together, they sat at the island on the stools and ate their breakfast. They talked, and they joked. It felt like usual except in the back of his mind, Naruto kept wondering just how long this all could last without it falling apart.


	4. Cheap Thrills I

**A/N:** Formerly "Cheap Thrills" to y-gal peeps. Thank you to lilangel171 for sending me this first chapter as I could not find it within my disorganized filing system.

* * *

It was the Friday after Thanksgiving, and Minato had just left for a weekend trip to Portland. Usually, Naruto would be hanging out with Sasuke right about now, but Itachi was on break for the holiday. He'd go over there tomorrow to say hello after they got in their family bonding. In the meantime, Sai was coming over to spend the night. The other teen always wanted to go to some club whenever they got together. He'd kind of wanted to stay home tonight, but the empty apartment felt lonely. He wondered what Sasuke was up to, and if he'd run into Yahiko yet. A month ago, after he'd decided to draw some boundaries between them, Naruto realized that meant he didn't have any right to lecture Sasuke about what he did with other guys, including that Yahiko-bastard.

Well, none of his business. He closed his laptop and, grabbing for his phone, threw himself across the bed. He started reading through the feeds on his Snapchat and Twitter - nothing from Sasuke, of course, as he was too cool for social media. He only commented on Naruto's stuff when he was out with other people. Naruto did tend to get in more trouble if Sasuke wasn't there to remind him how to _not_ act like a teenager.

His phone buzzed when he received a text from Sai.

 _In the lobby now. Should be up in five minutes._

He got off the bed, attempting to kick clothing and sneakers beneath it. Naruto replied as he picked up his baseball mitt from off the floor and put it on top of his bookshelf.

 _This time we're eating first before you drag me out to some gay club._

 _I hope your dancing has improved since last time. It's embarrassing for me to be seen with you._

He snorted. _You're just jealous that all your gay friends love me more than you._

 _They want to fuck you, so there's no way they'll tell you that you suck at dancing._

Ah, hm. When he put it that way. He thought that he got along pretty well with Sai's group of friends. They were all from other schools. Sai didn't have many friends who went to their school besides himself. Even Sasuke wouldn't have much to do with him other than a certain level of polite civility. Naruto always felt that if they actually gave it a try, they might realize they have things in common. Yet, while Sai was out and proud… Sasuke was - well, Sasuke was Sasuke.

With Sai, it was what you see is what you get, and Naruto liked that about him. He wasn't afraid to be himself. It sometimes meant that he shared a little too much information about his sex life, but it was alright. On the other hand, Naruto never told Sai about his forays into homosexuality with Sasuke. He teased Naruto occasionally, even suggesting stuff that wasn't entirely inaccurate, and Naruto didn't have the heart to outright lie about it. He would've admitted to it if asked directly, but it was pretty obvious Sasuke wouldn't be too happy about anyone from their school knowing.

There was this one thing he hadn't mentioned to Sasuke because it would only cause unnecessary drama, and Naruto took care of the situation swiftly. Sai confessed he had feelings for him over the summer. It was awkward, but Naruto managed to tell him he only saw Sai as a friend. He'd just broken up with the first girl he'd been dating, and he'd already been putting up with some attitude from Sasuke. But, Sai had taken it really well, and, after that, they were still friends. Sai never treated him any differently, and they went out just as much. If anything, it seemed to ramp up Sai's love life now that he wasn't focused on Naruto.

Usually the guys he "dated" were pretty cool. One even knew Sasuke because he was also in a band that played around Seattle. Not that Naruto didn't already know, but Sasuke was a pretty popular person in that whole scene. Bands always wanted him to play with them because he was proficient on several instruments and more mature and responsible than a lot of the other musicians his age. He'd also started doing the bookings for his band, and, because he was so fucking good at that stuff, other bands had tried to recruit him to manage their bookings, fees, and a whole lot of other crap Naruto didn't even understand.

Sasuke was so damn talented it should've been annoying, but, actually, Naruto - as usual - was very proud of him. He only wished Fugaku shared his feelings about it.

It was a few minutes after Sai's last text that he heard a knock at the door. Naruto dropped his phone on the bed and went to let his friend into the apartment.

"Yo," he said with a big smile.

"Hey." Sai gave him a disgruntled look. "Is that what you're wearing tonight?"

"No. I wanna have dinner first, and then I'll change. I hope Thanksgiving leftovers are okay?"

"That's fine. I'm not picky." He followed Naruto in and threw his leather jacket over the back of the couch. "What's Sasuke up to tonight?"

"He's hanging out with his brother and his brother's friends would be my guess."

"Are any of them good looking?" Sai went to the fridge and started pulling out tupperware tubs without waiting for him.

"Uh. I mean... yeah. I'd say so. I don't think any of them are as good looking as Itachi, though." He hopped up on the counter, watching Sai make himself at home in his kitchen.

"Sasuke's not bad looking, so it makes sense his brother would be attractive, too."

Naruto nodded. "His whole family is good looking."

"Your family is, too," Sai replied, plating some turkey and mashed potatoes for him.

He jumped down. "Ah, I can do that!"

"It's okay. It's faster if I do it. You'd get it all over the floors and walls."

"I wouldn't."

"Would you say Itachi or Sasuke is more good looking?" Sai asked casually. "In your opinion."

"Why are you asking me that?"

"Just curious."

"I guess I'd say they're both good looking guys in different ways. Itachi's got long hair and is more of that quiet, dry wit type of guy you know could probably be some kind of trained assassin for a government agency. Sasuke is..."

Sai turned around. "'Sasuke is'?"

"Sasuke's... cool, right?"

"The girls in our class seem to think so." He put the first plate in the microwave. "Some of the boys, too, I'm sure."

That wouldn't surprise him at all.

"Heh. Maybe so." He scratched the back of his neck as Sai turned around to face him. "Sasuke's got a lot of great qualities. It's why he's one of my best friends."

"Uh huh." Sai cocked his head slowly and gave him an unsettling smirk. "Well, you're mine for tonight, so forget all about Sasuke Uchiha for a while. If you can."

Naruto frowned. "Tch. You act like he and I broke up or somethin'."

"You two _have_ been acting oddly at school lately. Oh, for the past month I'd say."

"We have?" Naruto rubbed at his chin. He didn't think they'd been interacting any differently than normal. They got along fine. They just hadn't fooled around since that one night after the party. In fact, Sasuke had been pretty subdued as of late, but he figured it was because exams were coming up. Most of Sasuke's free time was spent at the library or performing on the weekends. Naruto had gone to a couple of his shows, and they still hung out when they had time. He'd say they talked on the phone about every night. So, what exactly was different?

"Lovers' quarrel," Sai said gleefully as the microwave dinged.

"Shut up. You don't know what you're talking about."

"Keep lying to yourself, Naruto. It's written all over your face how much you adore him. I'm over it. I hardly get jealous anymore."

He shook his head. "You realize we're hangin' out tonight, right? Just you and me?"

"I realize," said Sai as he put in the other plate and brought him over his so they could eat at the island counter. "I'm grateful he's so willing to lend you out to me."

Naruto rolled his eyes and picked up the fork Sai set in front of him. "So, moving on from that exciting topic. Where are we goin' tonight?"

"A club."

"Yeah, I know, but which one?"

"We're meeting my friends at R."

"Didn't we go there two weeks ago?"

"No, that was a different one. After this, I'll pick you out something to wear. You'd think Sasuke would dress you better. Doesn't he take you shopping?"

Naruto almost dropped his fork. "Why would he take me out shopping?"

"Are you kidding?" Sai crossed his arms. "Isn't it obvious?"

Crap. Had he given it away? "Um... no?"

"Haven't you seen the way he dresses outside of school? He's got style. Unlike you. Unless your style is sloppy jock."

"Hey, I know how to dress well when the occasion calls for it!"

"True. I wanted to bend you over at prom." Sai took his plate out of the microwave and joined him at the counter. They sat close enough for him to be able to smell Sai's cologne.

"I wonder how my date would've felt about that," Naruto replied.

"Maybe she would've wanted to join in," said Sai. "Ever think about having a threesome?"

He started choking on his potatoes. Sai slapped him on the back.

"I prefer to give my attention to one person at a time," he wheezed.

"You say that now, but there may come a time when the opportunity presents itself. And, you don't seem like having another dude on the other side of the girl would put you off."

He wondered what would give Sai that impression. "I don't think we should talk about this while I'm eating."

"Why? Isn't that what teenage boys are supposed to talk about? Sex? By the way, when was the last time you got any?"

"That's none of your business."

Besides his own hand, that would be a month ago, with Sasuke.

"Well, if it makes you feel better," Sai was saying, "Even though you broke up with that little cheerleader, she's been telling the other girls how _talented_ you are in bed."

"Shut up."

"You should be proud. I wish someone would spread that kind of rumor about me." Sai let out a heavy exhale. "Lucky bitch."

"I didn't realize she was telling other people," he mumbled, unable to help a slight blush. "Although, I guess girls talk about that stuff, huh?"

"They do." Sai rapped his knuckles next to his plate. "Even more than guys. It's strange I never hear rumors about Sasuke. You'd think he'd be getting tons of action."

"Sasuke's not into high school girls," he said somewhat defensively.

Sai shot him an amused look. "I bet."

Naruto glared. "Knock it off. Sasuke's tastes are mature. You don't have to worry about him. I went to see him play this one time, and the singer kissed him in front of the audience."

Oh shit. He shouldn't have mentioned that.

"Oh, really?" Sai asked. "An older woman? I suppose I could see that about him. Funny, I always figured he was holding out for you. Was she hot at least?"

"Very funny." Naruto remembered that situation clearly since that asshole Yagura had pissed him off. "Er... I dunno. The singer was... kind of... not very nice."

"Hm. Makes sense. Girls can be real bitches sometimes. But, so can I."

Naruto cleared his throat. "You're alright. I like you just the way you are."

"Keep saying stuff like that, and I'll fall in love with you again. Now. Hurry up and eat so I can go out and grind on some pretty twinks who _are_ willing to return my affections."

"I said I was sorry." He poked Sai in the arm. "If I was gay, I'd consider it."

"Then, try to be bisexual at least. I know you like girls, but there's a lot men have to offer, too."

Naruto felt his cheeks heat up again. "Yeah, yeah. You really do have a one track mind, don't you?"

Sai offered a crooked grin. "I just don't want you to miss out on a wild youth. When you first came to this school, you were so rebellious and anti-establishment, but now it's like Uchiha had you neutered. You look at that guy, and he's got to have something going on we don't know about. The fact that he plays with all kinds of bands in bars that none of us underage peasants can get into makes me think he leads some kind of double life."

"You're overthinking it, dude. Sasuke's a good guy. You can trust me on that." Naruto picked at his turkey, not as hungry as he was 10 minutes ago. "Well, I'm done, so if you wanna finish yours, I'll go find somethin' decent to wear."

"Are you sure you don't want help undressing?" Sai asked.

"Maybe after a few drinks," he replied.

Sai snickered. "Call me in when you're ready so that I can style your hair."

"Sure, sure," he said, getting up from the stool and heading to his bedroom. "I wouldn't want you to be embarrassed in front of your gay buddies because of all my flyaways."

* * *

Sasuke was sitting on the deck, guitar in his lap as he strummed along with some of the other guys. Today, several of Itachi's friends had gathered at the house. The weather was crisp but not too cold considering it was almost December. He continued playing as Hidan, a cigarette dangling from the corner of his mouth, began to sing, "Wise men say. It looks like rain today. It crackled on the speakers. And trickled down the sleepy subway trains."

Kimimaro, sitting at Sasuke's left, picked up where he left off, "For heavy eyes could hardly hold us. Aching legs that often told us. It's all worth it. We all fall in love sometimes."

The two men sang together in tones that were quiet and somber, "The full moon's bright. And starlight filled the evening. We wrote it, and I played it. Something happened. It's so strange, this feeling. Naive notions that were childish. Simple tunes that tried to hide it. But when it comes… we all fall in love sometimes."

Their singing stopped, but Sasuke played through the song, the melancholy melody caught in his mind as his eyes flicked to the corner where Itachi sat with Yahiko. They were talking together. Itachi was smiling, and then Yahiko laughed - that wonderful and free rumble that almost made him miss a note. He looked as attractive as Sasuke remembered with his wild hair and piercings, dressed in a dark hooded sweatshirt and a worn out pair of old jeans.

Hidan nudged him. "Where's your boyfriend tonight?"

"Where _is_ Naruto?" Kimimaro asked. "I thought you two were attached at the hip."

"Don't know," he replied, leaning his guitar against the table. "How long does it take for one man to make hot chocolate?"

"You know Deidara," said Hidan, "He's easily distracted. Hey, you two in the corner. Are you conspiring? You act like you haven't seen each other in ages even though you both go to the same damn college."

"Are you feeling left out?" Yahiko asked, his smile widening as he stood up from the chair and walked toward them.

"Yeah. Sasuke's not as fun without his partner in crime," Hidan replied. "He's mopin'."

"Shut up," Sasuke grumbled.

"I keep hearing about this Naruto," Yahiko said to him. "I wouldn't mind meeting the kind of guy that catches your eye, Sasuke."

Sasuke's gaze lifted slowly until it met the older man's.

"He's a classmate, and he's straight."

"Pretty sure he's more flexible than that," Kimimaro added with a chuckle. "I remember the first night we all hung out here. It made me nostalgic, watching the two of you kiss."

"Yeah, good thing Deidara still has it on video." Hidan punched him lightly in the shoulder. "What's the problem? We all approve of him."

"Now, now. Let's not all gang up on Sasuke," said Itachi, as he got up and walked their way, too. He stood beside Yahiko. "You'll like him, Yahiko."

"Ah, if you like him, Itachi, then I wouldn't mind meeting him. I've heard you talk about him enough that my interest is piqued."

"Just don't fall for him," said Hidan, "Or you'll have Sasuke to deal with."

"Aren't you guys a little too old to be playing matchmaker?" Sasuke asked, feeling irritated at being ganged up on. Not to mention, the idea of Naruto meeting Yahiko didn't sound very appealing.

For the past month, they hadn't exactly got into any raging fights, but there was a certain tension. Or, maybe that's because he'd been more focused on his studies lately. What else was he supposed to do when stuff between them kept building up? He needed to redirect his attention elsewhere so that he didn't make the same mistake he did a month ago.

Itachi placed a hand on his shoulder. "We're going into the city. You're more than welcome to go with us."

He looked up at his brother. "Where are you going?"

"Usual places," he answered. "Jirōbō and Kisame are meeting us."

"You should come," said Yahiko. "It wouldn't be the same without Itachi's little brother hanging out with us old folks and keepin' us from causing too much trouble."

He smiled at Sasuke, and the offer was very tempting.

"Not tonight," he said. "But you can call me if you need a designated driver."

"That's what Uber is for," Hidan interjected. "No need for you to get out of your cozy bed."

The back door slid open, and out came Deidara in the North Face jacket he'd borrowed from Itachi.

"Why are we all crowding around Sasuke?" Deidara asked. "Did I miss something? Are we picking on him because he's so adorable?"

"We aren't picking on Sasuke," said Yahiko as he put a hand on Sasuke's shoulder. "We're gettin' ready to go out, Dei."

"At least let me finish my hot chocolate," complained the blond. "Where's Naruto, Sasuke? I feel slighted that he hasn't shown up."

"Who knows?" He wondered why he was Naruto's designated keeper. "You may bump into him when you're downtown. He's usually out partying since his father is hardly home."

"I see, I see." Deidara nodded his head vigorously. "That explains the look on your face. If you come with, I'm sure you can text your beloved and have him meet us somewhere downtown."

"We can go one night without seeing each other," said Sasuke. "But if you do run into him, make sure he doesn't get arrested."

Itachi chuckled. "Is that the kind of trouble he gets into when you aren't around to keep an eye on him?"

"I wouldn't know. I don't keep track of what he does when he's hanging out with other friends."

"Of course."

He'd been doing enough reckless things over the past few months to feel like he'd be better off staying at home. He could get some more studying in before he went to bed. There were other things he should be working on, too. This was the first weekend he hadn't had a show in a while. It felt good to have some time off from the other guys in the band. Yagura could be overbearing, and his advances had only become more frequent. At first, it used to be a joke, a way for him to get under Sasuke's skin. Now it felt as though he was being seriously pursued. He hadn't mentioned it to Naruto since he had the tendency to try and play bodyguard, but Sasuke could handle the singer on his own.

"Well, if you're sure," said Yahiko. "We won't force you."

The rest of the guys got up and started shuffling inside. It must've been around 11 p.m. Both of their parents were in bed. Sasuke grabbed his guitar and followed behind Kimimaro. It would be good for Itachi to spend time alone with all of his friends. No need for him to tag along. They'd always been good enough to let him, but he knew how he would feel if he was Itachi.

By the time he returned his guitar to the room upstairs, everyone had their jackets on and were lingering near the hallway by the kitchen.

"I'll be home late," said Itachi. "Make sure you tell Naruto I expect to see him tomorrow."

"I will." He leaned against the wall, eyes straying to Yahiko as he slipped on his sneakers.

As if on cue, he turned and looked up, eyes locking with Sasuke's.

He smiled. "Have a good night, Sasuke. See you tomorrow."

Sasuke's cheeks grew hot. "Have fun."

"Bye, kiddo," said Hidan.

"See you, Sasuke," said Kimimaro.

Deidara, his hair in two braids that fell over his shoulders, came up to him while the others began piling out the front door. "You alright?"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"You seem... kind of down."

"I'm fine." He stood a little straighter.

"You know. I may look like this and act like a goof sometimes, but... if you're having any problems - especially when it comes to boys - you can always talk to me. There's not much I haven't been through already. You have my number if you want to talk."

"...Okay." He didn't know what to say, especially when Deidara put both arms around him and kissed him on the cheek.

"Goodnight."

Just like that, Deidara bounced his way down the hallway, his heels clicking on the hardwood floor as he left to join everyone else.

Sasuke went to the door and watched from behind the screen as the group got into Itachi's SUV and started heading down the long driveway.

* * *

Naruto was laughing as he walked into the lobby of the apartment complex with Sai. The other teen was dancing around like an idiot, trying to get him to play along. He drank enough tonight that he took Sai's offered hand and let himself be twirled a couple of times while stumbling toward the elevator. As they waited for the elevator, Sai slipped an arm around his waist.

"You had fun tonight?" He asked Naruto.

"Yeah, it was fun. I have to admit. Gay clubs are always more fun than the other ones."

"Sorry there weren't very many girls for you to hit on," Sai said, removing his arm long enough to push Naruto through the elevator doors.

"S'okay. I wasn't really lookin' for anything like that tonight."

"Pretty sure that if you swung the other way you could've had a lot of options."

"Heh." He slid up against the wall, keeping upright thanks to a metal bar. "Nah. Not one of your friends even tried anything."

"Did you want them to?" Sai leaned against him and rested his head on Naruto's shoulder. "I don't suppose you want to share a bed tonight?"

"Sai."

"Do you make Sasuke sleep on the couch when he stays the night?"

Naruto rubbed his lips together. "Yeah. Sometimes. If you want, you can sleep with me. You don't usually 'cause you say I kick and move around too much."

"You do." Sai picked his head up. "It's like you're epileptic once you fall asleep."

He shrugged. "Sasuke never complains."

The elevator doors opened.

"So you _do_ sleep with Sasuke when he comes over!" Sai pushed him through the doors and down the hallway. "Traitor."

"I told you he sleeps in my bed some of the time," he argued as he searched for the key in his back pocket. "And stop - stop makin' so much noise. Neighbors are gonna complain."

"Give me that." He took the key out of Naruto's hand. "It'll take you forever to get into the hole. Ah, wait. That didn't come out right."

Naruto snickered as he slumped against the wall, watching Sai open the door to the apartment. "Never had any complaints before."

"So I've heard," Sai muttered. When he had the door open, he waited for Naruto to go in first before closing it behind them.

They took off their shoes, and Naruto immediately went to the fridge to grab a bottle of water. "Want one?"

"I'm good," said Sai. "Mind if I take first shower?"

"Nope. Don't mind. Help yourself."

"I'll crash on the couch. It's cool."

"Whatever you want." Naruto waved him off and took a few sips of water to cool himself down. He was in shape, but five hours of dancing had worn him out. Not to mention it was hot as hell in there, and everyone liked to pack in nice and tight.

He brought his water with him as he headed for his room just in time to hear the shower turn on. Naruto ripped off his shirt and threw it into the corner somewhere. He collapsed on the bed with his pants still on, eventually crawling toward the pillows. Even after closing his eyes, he couldn't seem to fall asleep. He flopped around a couple of times until, with a huff, he got off the bed to remove his jeans. As he pulled them down, his phone fell out of his back pocket.

Naruto picked it up and stared at the screen. No messages. He wondered if Sasuke went out with all of his brother's friends? As he slipped back under the covers, he debated sending him a text - but he also didn't want to wake Sasuke up if he'd gone to bed. While he was staring at the screen, there was a quiet knock at the door.

"Come in."

"I'm done in there if you want the shower," said Sai, "Although it looks like you're ready for bed. Are you naked under there?"

"Nope. Got my boxers on."

"Damn. Just my luck. Make me breakfast tomorrow?"

"Yep. You got it. Wake me up if I'm still sleepin'."

"Oh, I will. You can count on it. Goodnight, Naruto. Give my regards to Sasuke."

"Hey - "

Sai closed the door before Naruto could throw something at him. Jeez. Sometimes he couldn't tell if Sai was that perceptive or if he was only jealous of Sasuke. Or both. Or neither, who knows? He wasn't sober enough to figure it out. Hm. He did want to text him, though.

He pressed on Sasuke's name and stared at the blinking cursor before typing.

 _You awake?_

There wasn't any response even after a whole minute.

"Fine then," he said aloud and left his phone on his chest. Two seconds later it started vibrating. Smiling, he picked it up and read.

 _I am now, idiot. Are you in jail?_

Naruto chuckled. _Not this time. I'm in bed, so no need to come bail me out_

 _As if I would. You still owe me for pizza last week._

 _Did you have fun with Itachi and his friends?_

 _I did. They left me behind. Went out to the clubs._

 _Ah, did they? I was out there all night. Why didn't Itachi text me?_

 _He probably thought you already had plans. Did you go by yourself like a loser?_

 _Nah, went with Sai. He's staying the night._

 _Cool_

He couldn't help a grin. _On the couch_

His phone started to ring, so he answered and held it to his ear.

"I didn't say anything."

Naruto had to laugh. "You didn't have to. He says hi, by the way."

"I thought you said he was on the couch."

"He is... but a few minutes ago he saw I was on my phone and apparently figured I was going to talk to you."

"And why would you want to talk to me at," there was a pause, "It's after 2 in the morning, Naruto."

"That's why I texted." He rolled over, pulling the covers up to his chest. "Tell me what you did today?"

"Why should I?"

"Curious, and I wanna hear a story before I go to sleep."

"Hm. The family went out last night for dinner. Neither of my parents are that big on Thanksgiving being Japanese and all, so we went out somewhere nice."

"That's not very patriotic," said Naruto. He smiled when he heard Sasuke's soft laughter. "Then what?"

"Itachi and I hung out. We played some video games, listened to records, talked. The usual things we do when he comes home."

"Was it nice to see your brother?"

"Yes."

"I'm glad." He buried his face into the pillow, still smiling.

"What about you? What did you do with Sai tonight?"

"More like what _didn't_ I do, am I right?"

"I'm hanging up now - "

"No, stop! I'm kidding. Uh. Dad and I had Thanksgiving dinner last night. He left for Portland today, so I moped around the apartment until Sai came over. We ate leftovers, and then he took me to R to meet up with his friends. Went to a couple more clubs, danced and drank too much, then we came back."

"Did you get anyone's number?"

"Heh. Nah. When I go with Sai and his friends, it's like they act as a barrier. No guys really come up to me. Or, were you askin' for yourself?"

"Hardly. I think I can do better than some stranger in a club."

"I think you can, too," he said without thinking.

There was a short silence on Sasuke's end.

"So, was he there?" Naruto asked.

"He? You'll have to be more specific. It was a literal sausage fest this evening."

"Yahiko." Naruto squinted through the dark at the wall in front of him. "Did he show up?"

"Yes. He's been here since this morning."

"Well?"

"Well, what?"

"Dunno. Does that... make you happy? Did you get to talk to him much? Is he still dating that chick?"

Sasuke sighed. "Naruto."

"I'm not askin' for any reason other than I...I'm cool with it. I mean. You're 17 now, and if, you know - "

"Nothing's happened," said Sasuke. "He's mostly avoiding me and sticking close to Itachi."

"That bastard is avoiding you?" Naruto abruptly sat up. "How can he do that?"

"Think about it. I'm sure it's awkward for him. It's awkward for me."

"Hm. Still."

"What's he going to do? Bend me over with my brother five feet away?"

Naruto took in a deep breath. "Do you want him to bend you over, Sasuke?"

"It was a joke, Naruto."

"I mean... do you feel, y'know, an attraction to him would you say?"

"Like I'm going to answer that," Sasuke replied, which Naruto could easily take as an affirmative.

"I kind of figured you would be." Naruto lay down again, on his back, and stared up at the ceiling. "This might be the only time I say this, but if you wanna, uh, hit that or whatever, I guess... you have my support."

"What exactly does that mean?" Sasuke asked.

"It means I don't wanna be a cockblock."

"What makes you think I was expecting something to happen?"

"Because." He rubbed at his eye. "I think you have feelings for him still. So, maybe you should talk to him. Maybe he's interested?"

"I don't know why you're saying any of this. You've always acted as if you hate his guts."

"I'm not super impressed with his judgment or the fact he's Itachi's best friend, but I thought I'd try to have your back."

"No offense, but I'd rather not talk about this."

"Okay," he said, stifling a yawn. "I'm not picking a fight. Just want you to talk to me about stuff. Didn't mean anything by it, Sas'."

"...Did you just call me 'Sas'?"

"Sorry. M'really tired. Too tired to finish your name."

"It's okay. Not you calling me that, but that you're tired. Your voice sounds - " He stopped whatever he was going to say.

"Finish," he said, only able to keep one eye open.

"Boundaries prevent me," Sasuke replied, lowering his voice.

"Hmm."

"You shouldn't make that sound either."

"So I can't talk, and I can't hum?"

"You promise Sai didn't try to molest you tonight?"

"Nope. Thought he was well-behaved. We had fun, too. One night, you'll go with us. Although, I guess that might blow your cover. Or, maybe not. He still seems to think you're straight."

"The two of you talk about me?"

"Yeah. Sometimes."

"I don't know how I feel about that."

"I only said good things, don't worry."

"It's not you I'm worried about," said Sasuke.

"Sai's just... I think he's under the impression you and I are havin' some big affair right under his nose."

"Naruto. We sort of are. Or, were, I should say."

He bit his lip and then let out a sigh. "I have a confession."

"If you tell me you made out with him, I will hang up. You can do anything you want _except_ make out with Sai."

"Woah, I didn't know we had stipulations? Didn't I even just say you could hit that again with Yahiko?"

"Do I need your permission to sleep with Yahiko?"

"No, of course not. That's not what I - "

"I know. I'm kidding."

"Oh. I knew that."

"So?"

"So, what?"

"Your confession."

"Ah. I forgot. Nevermind. I don't remember why I was gonna tell you. Probably 'cause I was feelin' some kind of Catholic guilt."

"I don't think you're Catholic, idiot."

"Nah. M'not gonna tell ya 'cause... I'm tryin' to think of why I would."

"I won't press you, but it's annoying when you do things like that."

"Promise you won't get mad or take it the wrong way or make it into a big deal?"

"Now you have me worried. No, I won't get mad or make a big deal about it."

"Over the summer, like, right after I broke up with Kayla - " He almost winced saying her name since it was a sore subject between them, "Sai happened to, uh, confess that he had some feelings. For me. At the time, I didn't tell you because I was thinkin' of Sai. And you and I had been fighting more than usual, so I thought that'd make it worse. But, I guess... I don't wanna hide things from you."

"...Okay."

"You mad?"

"I don't think 'mad' is what I'm feeling. How am I supposed to react to that anyway?"

Naruto rolled to his left side. "In case it wasn't obvious, I did turn him down."

"Good to know that you two weren't having your own secret affair under my nose." Sasuke, though he didn't sound happy, let out a heavy sigh. "Alright. Thanks for telling me, I guess. It - "

"Mm?"

"It's none of my business, you're right. That's between you and him. Do you talk to him about what we say to each other? What we do?"

"No, of course not."

"Then you don't need to tell me what goes on between the two of you. Even if you do suddenly develop feelings for him and decide you're into guys - "

"I told you because... our friendship isn't normal. Or, no. That's not it. It's... I want to tell you everything that's on my mind. I want you to feel like you can do the same, so if you thought Yahiko looked hot with his hair pushed back, you can... tell me these things."

"He did look hot in his hooded sweatshirt and tight jeans."

"Oh, well. Okay. There you go."

"He's got a nice laugh and a great smile, and when he looks at me, I feel like I'm some - school girl."

"But, you're not a school girl," said Naruto, feeling a strange pang in his chest that he had to rub. "No big deal. You've got a crush on him. What's wrong with that?"

"Lots of things. Everything you've always said - you're right. He's my brother's friend. I don't regret what happened between us, but I know it wasn't the smartest decision I've ever made. I put him in an awkward situation."

"Sasuke, you were drunk, and he's five years older than you - "

"That's not really an excuse. I wanted him. I'd wanted him for a while, and I set it up so that I would get what I want. You, out of all people, should know I'm capable of something like that."

Naruto swallowed hard.

"I don't think anything will happen," Sasuke told him. "Plus, everyone wants you to come over tomorrow, especially my brother. There's no opportunity for anything to happen."

"Why not?"

"Because he's only here until Sunday, and I figured you'd be staying the night tomorrow."

"You and I both know, and don't take this the wrong way, that me bein' in that house might not stop you from goin' after somethin', if you really want it."

"Naruto." Sasuke sighed again. "I know we haven't talked about this since that night, but I didn't really want that to happen. I was attracted to the guy, I guess, but I was mad and frustrated and lonely. I agree that we shouldn't restrict each other, but there was more going on with that than simple sex. We both know that, and... I am sorry."

"I know. Maybe... maybe it was kinda meant to be? A sign that the stuff that we'd been doing wasn't healthy for either of us. If you were feeling that angry and frustrated, then, I'm still glad we've decided to - yeah. It doesn't bother me too much if it's you hurting me, but the idea that I'm makin' you feel that way - "

"It shouldn't be like that," said Sasuke. "You can't just let me hurt you because you 'don't mind it'. You make it sound like you're some kind of masochist, which I know you're not. Even if you used to go around putting your fist through windows. Who are you, Holden Caulfield?"

Naruto chuckled. "Ah. You know, besides my hand, I haven't gotten any action since that night."

"That surprises me considering the rumors going around about you. I wanted to add to them, but I didn't think it was my place."

He groaned. "Yeah, I heard. Sai mentioned it to me tonight. Apparently no one at school felt like tellin' me to my face. It's kind of embarrassing."

"To have people think you're good in bed? I would've liked to have been spared the details. I heard enough in the locker room on a couple of occasions. However, I have to agree. From what I remember, you're very skilled at," Sasuke paused as if to smile, "Going down on your partner?"

"Shut up."

"They say you're very giving. Like a sexual saint."

"Okay, now you're just bein' an asshole. I don't even wanna date right now. It's too weird and complicated."

"I'm sure."

"I feel like you're enjoying this somehow."

"Yes, I do so love to think about what you do with your girlfriends."

"Sasuke - "

"It's fine. You can have your crushes, and I'll have mine."

Naruto lost his smile. "Yeah..."

"As good as it's been to have this conversation and hear your voice, I'm about to fall asleep on you."

Why did he feel a little bit sad hearing Sasuke had his own crushes and was even still attracted to Yahiko? He genuinely wanted Sasuke to be open with him about these things because he thought it would be good for him, and that's how their friendship should be. This was a step in the right direction, for sure. They were doing their own things but could still talk about stuff openly.

But, it made him feel lonely. He was always waiting for Sasuke to move on. Why did it sit heavy with him that what he felt for the girls he dated seemed insignificant compared to -

It didn't matter.

"Naruto?"

He closed his eyes. "Ah, sorry. I almost fell asleep on you first."

"Should I come and get you tomorrow?"

"Nah. I can get there on my own. You should keep hangin' out with Itachi and everyone else. Was Deidara there?"

"He was."

"Did he ask about me?"

"Everyone asked about you, attention whore. You won't be lonely tomorrow. I doubt I'll have you to myself at any point. I do ask that you not punch Yahiko in the face as that would give it away."

"I can be subtle," Naruto said. "I'll be well-behaved. As long as - "

"As long as what?"

"Just don't do it in front of me. Is that okay to request?"

"Why would I have sex in front of you?"

"I meant kissing and touching, Jesus. Not sex! No, don't have sex in front of me. Please."

"Fine, if you're going to be that adamant about it." Sasuke snorted. "Jealous boyfriend."

He rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. If that's what you wanna call it. I doubt you'd want me to do that in front of you."

"No, I really wouldn't, but I have seen you with girls, Naruto. So, you can handle it."

He didn't know what to say to that.

"Don't come too late," said Sasuke. "I'll let you go to sleep."

"I promised Sai breakfast, but then he'll probably take off."

"I see. You promised him breakfast, did you?"

He pulled at his bedsheet. "I know you're not jealous of him, so don't try to be cute."

"I don't think he's your type."

"No, what is my type?"

"Cute cheerleader is what it seems so far," Sasuke replied. "Way to be a walking cliche."

"I'm sorry I'm not into guys with tattoos and piercings."

"Go to bed, Naruto. You're not making sense."

"Aren't I?"

"No."

"M'not tired anymore."

"Oh? Well, I am. Go jerk off. Maybe that'll help."

He smirked. "I guess I could, but that would suck if Sai changed his mind and decided to walk into my room while I was masturbating."

"Lock the door then."

"Sounds like too much work."

"Then ask him to do it for you."

Naruto frowned at his alarm clock. "Ass."

"Why?"

"I'm goin' to bed."

"Don't go to bed mad at me for making a dumb joke. What is your deal?"

He shrugged. "Who knows? Probably sexually frustrated. You're right. I'll go jerk off. I shoulda done it before I went out. I didn't take a shower yet anyway. Alright then. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Naruto..."

"What is it?"

"Enjoy your shower. I won't say anything about boundaries if I happen to cross your mind once or twice. Goodnight."

It took a second for him to reply, but all he could say was, "Goodnight, Sasuke."


	5. Cheap Thrills II

On Saturday morning, Sasuke woke up early and decided to drive to the gym. His parents invited him to breakfast, but he was in the mood to work out. In fact, he'd been doing a lot of that lately. One good thing about this past month was that it had given him a fair amount of time to think. He'd stopped to consider his relationship with Naruto as a whole: what he wanted versus what he could have, and what Naruto was trying do by laying down ground rules.

A month ago, he realized how much he'd fucked up by sleeping with that DJ. The worst part was how he'd treated Naruto afterward even though what happened between them ended up being the subject of many wet dreams since. It was just that he hadn't been used to sharing his attention, and after two girlfriends, it left him more frustrated than he'd realized. Naruto was easily the closest friend he'd ever had, and from the beginning, he'd always told Sasuke that he wanted them to be honest with one another. Part of him understood that if he came out to his parents _right now_ \- Naruto might look at him differently, even if for only a second.

Until he could do that, or be the person Naruto imagined him to be, there was no point in hoping for something more. He'd seen the changes in Naruto over the time they'd known one another, too. When they first met, Naruto was still in the grieving stage after losing his mother, but now his temper had improved, he hardly got into trouble at school, and he'd become one of the most popular kids in their class. Perhaps they were beginning to move in different directions, and that should be okay, right? Naruto remained by his side, but this way Sasuke wouldn't hurt him. If Naruto could say he was okay with him and Yahiko hooking up again, then maybe he really was serious about the two of them becoming "normal" friends. Even though he continued to detect an attraction between them, if this is what Naruto needed or what would be best for him, then Sasuke had no choice but to respect his decision.

However, it _was_ pretty fucking unfortunate that idiotic cheerleader had to run her mouth about their sex life. Didn't being discreet mean anything to teenage girls these days? If he hadn't learned to just let it go, he'd be angry all of the time. So, he chose to put that energy into studying, working out, music, and a lot of jerking off. Between staying in the same house as Yahiko and thinking about all the amazing things Naruto really _could_ do with his mouth, he needed to burn some of this pent up sexual frustration or he'd do something stupid tonight. He was glad Naruto was coming because that meant zero chance of his hormones getting the best of him. Last night, if he'd gone out with everyone, he might've ended up jumping Yahiko.

After a 10-minute drive, Sasuke pulled into the gym parking lot and turned off the engine in the middle of Fitz and the Tantrums' "The Walker". He grabbed his stuff and headed inside the gym, where he greeted the young woman at the desk. There were only a few people around, so he could lift weights in peace while listening to some he pushed the door open to the men's locker room, he considered how much things had changed since they met. Not that he'd admit it to Naruto, but he couldn't imagine what life would be like without that idiotic blond and his ridiculous blue eyes and sexy bedroom voice that always came out whenever he was tired. One day these feelings might go away - if Naruto did move away to for college, found some girlfriend, got married, and had a couple of kids. Or, maybe like with Yahiko, there'd always be a part of him that wished things could've turned out differently.

* * *

After Naruto got up, made Sai breakfast, and walked him to the closest bus stop, it was already half past noon. If it would've been warmer, he would've gone for a run. He supposed dancing last night was a decent enough workout, especially when the muscles of his thighs, back, and calves were still burning like crazy. He took his phone out of his coat pocket and decided to call Sasuke to see what the plans were for tonight. The phone rang until he connected to Sasuke's voicemail.

"Hey, Sai just left, so I thought I'd see what time you want me to come over. M'gonna head back to the apartment to get my shit together and make my way over to your house. Call me if you want me to come later 'cause once I'm on the bus it'll be too late. See ya later, dick. Hope you're not blowin' your boyfriend Yahiko in your brother's bathroom again."

He hung up and shoved the phone into his pocket. Even though he'd been somewhat drunk last night, he remembered their conversation clearly. Usually bringing up Yahiko's name was taboo, so he was glad they were able to talk about it openly. He figured Sasuke still had some kind of feelings for the guy. It was his first time, after all. He'd seen enough pictures of Yahiko to know that he was good looking. If he went to Stanford, that meant he was smart, too, and he was into music. He just hoped Sasuke would be careful about what he chose to do, especially if Yahiko was seeing someone. Then again, maybe that wouldn't matter to Sasuke, and Naruto had grown tired of being so self-righteous all the time. He'd support him in whatever he wanted to do as long as it didn't get anyone killed or maimed, or even if he felt that tiny pang of fear at being left behind. When Sasuke hid stuff from him, it made him feel like he was being lied to. It was possible Sasuke didn't feel comfortable opening up to him about these things, and that's not what he wanted to happen between them.

He stepped onto the elevator, humming a song he had stuck in his head thanks to last night's club hopping. By the time he finished cleaning and putting away the dishes, he was ready to begin packing his overnight bag. Still no word from Sasuke, so he took that as all things are go. It would be good to see Itachi and the other guys. He'd be polite to Yahiko, too. If he was a good friend of Itachi's, he couldn't be that bad of a guy, other than that whole pedophilia thing he had going on. Once Naruto finished packing, he turned the heat down and all of the lights off. He made sure the door to the apartment was locked, and, finally, was on his way to Sasuke's house in the suburbs.

* * *

Sasuke was downstairs playing Dark Souls with Itachi when his mother yelled down that Naruto was here. Yahiko was lying on the couch, humoring them by watching them play and listening to their bickering. No one had much energy it seemed. They'd been hanging out in the basement most of the afternoon.

"Tell him not to dawdle, Sasuke," said his brother. "Have him put his stuff away and then send him down here immediately."

He got up from the floor. "Why don't you just pause the game and greet him yourself?"

"I would if I thought I could trust you not to let my character die here."

"The whole point of the game is that your character is going to die. Over and over."

"Could you just go get Naruto?" Itachi blindly tried to swipe at him. "I'm your older brother. Do as I say."

"Should I go with you?" Yahiko asked. He sat up, but Sasuke waved away his offer.

"I'll bring him down," he replied. "He'll be mad you're playing this without him, Itachi."

"Then he should've come sooner. I've missed my little texting buddy."

"There's something wrong with you," Sasuke mumbled before taking the steps up two at a time to greet his guest.

He found Naruto in the kitchen flirting with his mother as usual. Sasuke never saw her laugh so much as when she was talking to him.

"Hey," he said while standing in the doorway.

"Hey," Naruto said back, immediately bursting into a grin. "Happy Thanksgiving."

Sasuke smirked. "Thanks. Where's my gift?"

"Can't you see? I'm standing right here?" He thought he was so hilarious.

Mikoto laughed again. "You really are adorable, Naruto. Can I get you anything to drink?"

"Nah, don't worry about me. Where's Itachi?"

"He's downstairs," Sasuke told him. "He insists you go down there immediately. He's playing Dark Souls with Yahiko."

For a second, the expression on Naruto's face changed, but it didn't last long enough for anyone but him to notice.

"You haven't met Yahiko yet, have you?" Mikoto asked. "He's been one of Itachi's best friends since they met at college. Sasuke's fond of him, too. He's a very nice young man."

"I've heard a lot about him," Naruto answered her politely. "I like all of Itachi's friends."

"Even Hidan?" Sasuke asked. He'd have to congratulate Naruto on his acting skills.

"I do. He let me ride his motorcycle once."

"Does your father know about that?" Mikoto asked, holding her hand to her cheek. "I hope you wore a helmet."

"I did, don't worry." Naruto gave his mom a big smile. "It wasn't my first time on one."

"Well, okay then. Itachi's friends can play rough, so I wouldn't want you to get hurt, dear."

"Are you going to keep my brother waiting?" Sasuke asked, walking over to him and taking his backpack from off of his shoulder. "I'll put this in my room, so you can head down there."

"You sure?"

"I'll be down in a minute," he said, able to tell he was asking whether it was alright to meet Yahiko on his own. Frankly, Sasuke trusted Naruto to behave, so he wasn't worried. Plus, Itachi would be there to keep Naruto from breaking anyone's kneecaps.

"Alright then. I'll be downstairs if you need me." Naruto gave him one last questioning glance before heading to the basement.

Sasuke watched him go and then looked at his mother. "What are we doing for dinner?"

"Whatever you and Itachi want. We can order pizza if you'd like. Do you know how many are going to be here tonight?"

"I don't think they'll show up until later, so it'll probably just be me, Naruto, Yahiko, Itachi, you and father for a while."

"Your father's lying down. He wasn't feeling well this morning."

Sasuke's eyebrow lifted. "Is he alright?"

"Upset stomach, I think. No need to worry." She set her hand on Sasuke's head and ruffled his hair. "Naruto hasn't stayed the night in a while, has he?"

"We've both been busy. Minato's stayed home the past couple of weekends, so Naruto wanted to spend some time with him."

"That's good to hear. I was starting to worry about him always being alone in that apartment. He doesn't have a girlfriend, does he?"

Sasuke slid a hand into one of his back jean pockets. "No. Not right now. He did before, though. They broke up."

"I wonder what she was like, hm? I'm sure Naruto only likes nice girls. Do you think?"

"It's hard to say what Naruto likes," he replied. "Pizza's fine. I'm going to put his bag away."

"Alright, sweetie. I'll order the pizza whenever you want. Maybe you guys can go pick it up and save your mother the trip."

"Of course," he said.

"Sasuke," she called to him as he started to walk out of the kitchen.

He paused in the doorway and waited. She walked over, leaned down, and kissed him on the forehead. Sasuke felt embarrassed, but he didn't say anything.

"That's for being the kind of young man I'm very proud to call my son. Go on then, go hang out with the other boys and leave your mother behind."

He stared at her for a moment. "Mother?"

"Yes?"

Sasuke shook his head. "Nothing. Let me know if I need to run to the store to get father anything."

"I will. Have fun, Sasuke."

He left her alone and headed downstairs to find Naruto sitting on the floor beside Itachi while Yahiko sat on his brother's other side.

"Did I miss the introductions?" Sasuke asked as he took his seat on the couch.

"You did," said Yahiko. "I'll have to get to know Naruto once your brother's finished with this game. He won't let us talk while he's playing."

"This is a very serious part," Itachi responded. "It requires my full concentration."

"Mother says she's willing to pay for pizza for all of us. Did she... seem strange to you today?" He asked his brother.

"Huh?" Naruto turned around. "I didn't think she was actin' strange."

"Yes, but your ability to read people is about as good as Helen Keller's," Sasuke said dryly.

"How can you make fun of a poor dead blind lady like that?" Naruto asked, feigning outrage.

Itachi threw an arm around Naruto's shoulders. "I missed this. You always bring out the political incorrectness in my brother that so amuses me."

"You could get away with it at Stanford," said Yahiko. "You should see the looks I get from the rich frat boys when I use the school's gym. They never believe I'm a student because of all my tattoos and piercings. I s'pose there are some things I miss about Berkeley."

"You make it sound like you're bragging." Itachi smirked at his friend. "I think we all know what kind of reactions men at the gym have when they see you."

Yahiko let out a gruff laugh. "That's not what I meant."

Naruto shot Sasuke a look, which he ignored.

"Sasuke went to the gym this morning," said Itachi. "It must be nice to be young and have that kind of energy."

"Wow, you went to the gym this morning even after I woke you up last night?" Naruto asked.

"We didn't talk for very long," replied Sasuke, "I was fine."

"True. You only sleep, like, four or five hours a night max."

"You sound like you know Sasuke very well," said Yahiko. "I heard a lot about you from our friends, Naruto. I hope we'll have a chance to talk later as I hear we have similar interests."

"We do?" Naruto asked, and Sasuke could hear disbelief in his voice, though only he would've noticed it.

"I told Yahiko about your interest in cars and motorcycles," Itachi clarified. "His uncle has a whole garage full of classic cars, doesn't he? Yahiko helps him out in the summer to restore them. He's very skilled with his hands."

Naruto suddenly snorted.

"What's so funny?" Itachi asked. "Do you want to play?"

"Nah." Naruto leaned back on his arms and spread his legs out in front of him. "I'm good. I was just tellin' Mikoto about the time Hidan let me ride on his motorcycle with him."

"Yeah, Hidan's got a great bike," Yahiko agreed. "I love Harleys. Grew up around guys who liked to rebuild 'em and ride 'em hard."

"You definitely grew up in an interesting way considering who your parents were," Itachi remarked. "How is father feeling, by the way, Sasuke? Did mother mention anything?"

"I didn't even know he wasn't feeling well," replied Sasuke. "He seemed okay this morning when they went to breakfast."

"I'm sure he'll feel better after he gets some rest," said Yahiko. "His job must be pretty stressful."

"Well, then." Itachi turned off the game. "Shall we go to a movie, binge watch _Lost_ on Netflix, or is there something else the three of you would like to do?"

"Don't mind," said Naruto.

"If we're that bored, we might as well go ice skating at that new rink," Sasuke suggested.

"Sounds good to me." Naruto was already on his feet. "Although I wonder if my ankles will hold out. I'm sore from bein' dragged to every club in Capitol Hill last night."

"Gay clubs?" Itachi asked. "Who were you with?"

"Oh, my friend Sai. Not sure if you've met him."

"I see. So, you're not only cheating on me, you're cheating on my brother, are you?" Itachi teased.

Sasuke immediately thought of that moment he'd confessed to 'cheating'. He watched Naruto for his reaction, but all he did was chuckle and rub the back of his head before their gazes finally met.

"Well," Naruto said, not giving much away, "It seemed like a good idea to let the two of you catch up, and all of your friends were here, so..."

"You know you're always welcome to hang out with us. Everyone was disappointed you weren't here, and then Sasuke wouldn't go out with us either. But, now I understand why. He didn't want to miss your phone date. I assume it was to check in on you and make sure you hadn't been arrested."

"Heh. It was more like I was a little drunk and started texting him after I got home."

"Drunk texting, eh?" Itachi nodded thoughtfully. "I'm disappointed you didn't text me then."

"Sorry." Naruto pat his brother on the arm. "Next time I'll text you. Promise. So, are we gonna skate or what? I wanna race Sasuke around the rink and see who's faster."

"Idiot," said Sasuke. "I used to play little league hockey."

"Uh, yeah, me too, and I'm from Chicago. We have a much better hockey team than Seattle."

"I can't argue with that," said Itachi.

"Whatever." Sasuke went up to Naruto and thwacked him on the back of the head just because.

"What was that for?" Naruto's nose wrinkled and as he was about to punch Sasuke in the arm, he was able to grab him by the elbow, spin him around, and put him in a choke hold.

"Very impressive," said Itachi. "You've been practicing judo, haven't you?"

"Tch. No. He's just a wimp." Sasuke tightened his hold when Naruto struggled.

"If you wanted an excuse to touch me, you should've said so," Naruto mumbled. "Jackass."

Surprising him, Yahiko started to laugh. "It's exactly like you said."

He was talking to Itachi, but Sasuke wasn't sure what he meant.

"I told you," replied Itachi.

"Wait, what did you say to him?" Naruto asked, and Sasuke let him go, although not before receiving a hard push as retribution.

"Ignore him," said Sasuke. "Who knows what kind of warped things enter my brother's mind. It's only unfortunate that he's repeating those things to other people."

"Ah, Sasuke." Yahiko came up next to him and placed an arm around his shoulders. "He only said you had a best friend now. One that makes you laugh and act your age finally."

He couldn't help but have a reaction to the closeness of the other man's body. "...What's that supposed to mean?"

"You were always so serious," said Yahiko. "It's good to hear you laugh."

"Sorry for being serious," he mumbled, feeling goosebumps on his skin as Yahiko's fingers squeezed his upper arm.

"Maybe on the way back we can order pizza and pick it up so mother doesn't have to," Itachi suggested.

"It'll be nice to take it easy," said Yahiko. "Last night ended up being just as crazy as when you and I go out together at school." He left Sasuke's side and followed Itachi up the stairs.

Sasuke remained standing there until he heard Naruto clear his throat behind him.

"Very smooth," he said.

Sasuke turned to him. Naruto had his arms crossed, but his expression wasn't exactly readable. Was he amused or annoyed?

He took a couple of steps forward until he stood in front of Naruto.

"What?" Naruto asked. "I'm not gonna say anything. You're an adult."

"It's not as if I can help it. My body's reacting on its own."

Naruto's eyes narrowed at him the slightest bit. "I know how it works. No need to explain."

"Not like you'd understand," he said. "Since you had the opportunity to jerk off last night."

"Oh, do you know that for sure, or was that just a thing I said to get you off the phone?"

"I don't know, Naruto." Sasuke, smiling crookedly, reached for a piece of his hair and gave it a gentle tug without Naruto moving to stop him. "Did you... get off?"

"As if I'd tell. Why don't you go worry about your older boyfriend, hm?"

Even after a month of nothing happening, that desire to lean in and kiss him when they argued or Naruto acted jealous or overprotective hadn't gone away.

"What's with that look?" Naruto asked suspiciously and put a hand to Sasuke's chest to push him backward a step or two.

"Only admiring the blue of your eyes," he replied, knowing it would annoy Naruto further.

"Shut up, bastard. Stop tryin' to rile me up. I'm gonna beat your ass once we're on the rink."

"Maybe we should make a wager then," he replied.

"Oh yeah? What are the stakes?"

"Loser has to do whatever the winner says."

"Huh? What kinda wager is that?"

"You won't have to worry about it so long as you win," Sasuke replied, turning his back on him. "Get your mind out of the gutter, Naruto. I won't ask for anything sexual. Obviously."

Naruto ran up behind him and gave him a push to get him going up the stairs. "Wasn't even thinkin' of that. You're the one with their mind in the gutter."

"Are you sure I didn't cross your mind at least once during your shower last night?"

"Tch. Maybe if you beat me, I'll give you an answer to that."

He smirked. "I look forward to kicking your ass then."

When they were upstairs, they found Yahiko and Itachi in their jackets and shoes, ready to go.

"Took you two long enough," Itachi said. "We'll wait for you in the car."

Sasuke went to the closet to retrieve their coats while Naruto put his sneakers on and set Sasuke's shoes out for him.

"Thanks," Naruto said as he took his coat from him.

Sasuke slipped on his shoes and held the door open for him. "After you."

* * *

Naruto was taking a break to grab a cup of hot chocolate from the concession stand. The rink had been built as an addition to the old convention center. There was a pretty good crowd, mostly younger kids and then people their age. Last he saw, Itachi and Sasuke were trying to prove who could be the next Brian Boitano. Okay, well, no. They weren't trying any triple sow cows, but they'd spent the last 20 minutes racing. Itachi won most of the time, of course. Sasuke won twice, but he was pretty sure his brother pretended to lose out of pity. He didn't feel like making small talk with Yahiko, so it felt like a good time to step off the ice.

While he was sitting on one of the benches, he pulled his phone out to check his messages. There were the usual texts from some of the girls he knew and a few guys on the baseball team. Sai sent him a photo from last night that Naruto didn't even know he'd taken. Best not to show that one to Sasuke.

"What are you grinning about, idiot?"

Naruto looked up and found Sasuke standing there. "Oh, did you finally decide who had the bigger penis between you and your brother?"

"I bet you'd like to know the answer to that, wouldn't you?"

He gave the bench a pat. "I already know it's Itachi even without seeing it."

"I'm going back." Sasuke promptly turned around, but Naruto, laughing, got up quick to grab him by his jacket.

"Come on. Sit. I'll share my hot cocoa with you."

Sasuke turned slowly to regard him. His cheeks were pink from the cold, and he looked -

"What?" Sasuke asked. "You're staring."

He bit his lip. "Are you gonna sit and keep me company or what?"

"Fine, but only if you tell me what you were looking at that made you so happy."

Naruto sat back down and Sasuke took a seat next to him. He stole the styrofoam cup from his hand and sipped.

"Nothin'. A picture from last night that Sai texted."

"Oh? Let me see then." He started to reach for the phone, but Naruto held it away from him. "Didn't you tell me last night that we should be more open with one another?"

"Did I say that?"

"Even if you were drunk, it still stands." Sasuke handed the cup back to him, their fingers overlapping briefly.

"I wasn't that drunk," he mumbled.

"Naruto."

"Fine, man. You're so nosy, bastard." He handed over the phone.

Sasuke pulled up the photo. "Oh."

"I tried to warn you."

"Who are all of these men, and why are they touching you like that?" He gave Naruto a long look, a single eyebrow lifted.

"Sai's friends." He shrugged. "We were just dancing."

Sasuke hummed before handing him the phone. "I didn't realize you were so easy."

"Tch. Shut up. They think it's funny that I go out with them and I'm straight."

Sasuke didn't say anything; instead, he glanced off toward the rink, where they could see the other skaters through the clear partition. With a sigh, Naruto gave him a nudge.

"Tell me what you're thinking," he said. "But, I promise. It's all good fun."

"You don't have to explain yourself to me. I guess I never thought about what you got up to when you're out with him."

"Sai's been my good friend as long as you have."

Sasuke turned, meeting his gaze. "What do you think of Yahiko?"

The question caught him off guard.

"Um. He seems nice."

"Were you expecting him not to be?"

Naruto sipped from his cup. "I hadn't thought about it. You don't talk about him much. I only know him from some photos and a few things Itachi's mentioned. I thought he'd be more like the other guys - but he's not."

"No? How so?"

"I guess it makes sense. Itachi met him in college, but he's known all these other guys since high school. He's clearly really smart, attractive, and," Naruto ran a hand through his hair, "A good guy. If he wasn't your brother's friend and didn't seem to have some kind of on-again, off-again relationship with some chick, I guess I'd say - "

He stopped when he saw Yahiko and Itachi skate by together.

"What?" Sasuke asked, leaning into him and lowering his voice, "What would you say, Naruto?"

"That someone like that... is the kind of guy I could imagine you dating."

If Sasuke had a reaction to his words, it didn't show on his face, and after this long, Naruto knew that meant he was thinking on something very deeply. He, however, wasn't sure if he wanted to ask his thoughts on the matter. Would he be alright if Sasuke dated Yahiko? It was hard to admit, but he trusted Itachi's judgment completely, so if Yahiko was his best friend, then Naruto had to admit he couldn't be a bad guy. In fact, he'd been nothing but nice to him this whole afternoon.

"Okay, well." He stood up, balancing himself on his skates, and tossed the cup into the garbage. "I'm ready for our race. Unless you're too tired from competing against your brother."

"Is the wager still on?" Sasuke asked, also getting to his feet.

"Yeah. Why? Do you already have somethin' in mind that you want?"

"I do now. You?"

He crossed his arms. "Hadn't thought about it."

"Is it because I already do everything you say?"

The way he said that made Naruto almost forget that they were in public.

"Don't flirt with me," he said, "When your boyfriend's only right behind that plastic wall."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "He's not my boyfriend, Naruto. No matter how many times you imply it today." He grabbed Naruto by his arm to get him moving.

"I'm only kidding, Sasuke."

Catching him off guard, Sasuke put an arm around his shoulders and when he spoke, his lips were close to Naruto's ear.

"As long as you're here, I have no interest in anything happening with him." He let go of Naruto and walked at his side.

"I didn't say anything."

Sasuke gave him one last look before they entered the rink. "You didn't have to."

* * *

Sadly, despite their best efforts, when they finished their tenth lap around the rink - with Itachi and Yahiko playing referee - the two of them ended in a tie of 5-5.

"One more," Naruto said.

"Then you'll want another if you lose," Sasuke replied, trying to catch his breath as he leaned against the wall. "That's why we went all the way up to 10 in the first place."

"But what about the wager?"

"I guess nobody wins. That, or we each do something for the other."

"If we're both losers, then no one gets anything," Naruto said so seriously that Sasuke couldn't help but smirk at his childish competitive streak.

Itachi and Yahiko skated over to them.

"You two seem evenly matched to me," said Itachi, "Something I've been saying for some time."

"You guys make me think of my best friend growing up." Yahiko leaned against the wall, next to where Sasuke stood - his elbow touching Sasuke's arm. "We used to compete over everything except girls. He was smaller than me, so when it came to athletics, I always won, but he was incredibly cunning when I think about it. He might've even given you a run for your money, Itachi."

"Is this Nagato?" Itachi asked.

"Yeah."

Sasuke knew this story, so it was Naruto who mistakenly asked:

"Are you still best friends with him? What happened?"

Yahiko spared the blond a sad smile. "He passed away our senior year. Cancer."

"Oh. I'm sorry to hear that." Naruto looked pretty stricken by this information. "My mother... had cancer, too. Her dying was kind of the reason I ended up in Seattle."

"It's a terrible thing," said Yahiko. "I like to do as many of the walks as I can. I think about him all the time. He was a shy kid, but he was a good guy. Loyal. I'm sorry to hear about your mother, Naruto. It's hard to lose someone so important when you're young."

Naruto was on his other side, so he leaned in front of Sasuke to keep talking to Yahiko.

"Yeah, it was pretty bad the first few months. My dad and I still are workin' out our relationship and all that, but... I've had Sasuke, so... he keeps me in check."

Sasuke flushed at his words. "I don't do anything..."

"Sasuke pretends to be aloof," said Yahiko, "But... it's all an act, of course. I'm sure you know this already."

"I do." Naruto grinned. "You've known him for a while, eh?"

"I have."

Naruto started to look conflicted, as if he just remembered who he was talking to. Nervously, he chuckled, and rubbed the back of his neck.

"We should swap stories," said Yahiko.

"Yeah..."

"Should we," said Itachi, "Think about dinner? It's almost 6. We could order pizza and pick it up on the way home. Unless the three of you would rather stay longer?"

"I'm ready," Naruto answered.

"You don't seem very enthusiastic about pizza," Itachi commented. "Would you prefer something else?"

"Nah. Pizza's good. I think I'm just tired."

"It's all that partying." Sasuke leaned into him, knowing full well what was on his mind. "I'll let you sleep in tomorrow."

"Are the guys comin' over tonight?" Naruto asked.

"Would you like them to?" Itachi placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Sure. It's always good to see 'em. Seems like they only come around when you're in town."

"I'm sure they'd be happy to take you out any time you want. Don't you have Deidara's number?"

"Yeah, but I don't wanna be a bother."

Sasuke knew he should say something to snap him out of his mood, but it was Yahiko who took Naruto by the elbow and led him toward the exit. He said something to Naruto that Sasuke couldn't make out. He was curious what the two of them would talk about if left alone.

"Yahiko knows what Naruto went through. At least, more than you and I could relate to," Itachi said. "I'm sure he feels bad for reminding Naruto of those things, so he'll try to cheer him up. I always thought it might be good for the two of them to talk. They're very similar, don't you think?"

To be honest, he'd never thought about it until now. Those times he wondered whether or not he had a type - after seeing the only two men he'd ever been interested in standing side by side - he could say that he _did_. Even so, it made him uneasy for some reason. He was aware how charming Yahiko could be. And Naruto, too. When he liked someone, he had this annoying habit of flirting without realizing it. All this time, Sasuke had naively thought that he was an exception to Naruto's heterosexual inclinations, but after his drunken confession last night about Sai, the photo he saw on his phone today, and then watching him with Yahiko… would it really be possible for Naruto to show interest in other guys besides him? He was perplexed that he felt this way, but maybe he was only being paranoid because Yahiko and Naruto were two people who could have just about anyone they wanted.

"Sasuke?" Itachi called him. "Are you worried Yahiko's going to steal him away from you?"

He gave his brother a sober look but didn't say anything.

Itachi's brow furrowed. "You're not serious?"

He only shrugged. "I'm heading in. Don't forget to call and order the pizza."

* * *

On the way to pick up their order from the pizza place, Naruto rode in the back with Yahiko. Before they got to the car they ended up talking more about his mother and Nagato. He never knew that Yahiko had gone through a similar situation of losing a loved one to cancer. Even if he hadn't forgotten the fact that he'd diddled Sasuke or that the age of consent in California was 18, it was becoming increasingly more difficult to keep holding onto his grudge.

"Your mother sounds like a very wonderful woman," Yahiko said after they'd put on their seatbelts. "I bet you're a lot like her."

"My dad says I am, at least when we're arguin'. She was pretty great, though. Wanna see a picture, or is that too creepy?"

The older man smiled. "No, not creepy. I'd love to see a photo."

He pulled out his phone and searched through some photos until he found one of her in her early 20s.

"She looks a lot like you," said Yahiko. "Look at that red hair, too. But you're so blond." He glanced at Naruto and grinned. "And here I thought it was natural."

"Heh. My dad has blond hair that's even lighter than mine. I wonder what I would look like if I'd been born with her hair color? My best friend in high school was a ginger, but it looked really good on him. I think your color looks good on you, too."

Yahiko narrowed his eyes, even though he was still smiling. "Yeah? You're not hitting on me when Sasuke's right there, are you?"

"What?" Naruto's cheeks instantly flushed. He waved his arms frantically. "I wasn't - "

"I was kidding." He pat Naruto on the knee. "That seems to be an inside joke with the gang - you and Sasuke. Did you know they refer to you as his boyfriend when you're not around?"

"They - what?" Naruto groaned. "Don't listen to them. I think they do it to mess with Sasuke."

"Ever since I've known him, it's been a pastime of Itachi's to give his brother a hard time. It can be amusing at times, but mostly I always felt bad for Sasuke."

"Wow, you're a better man than me 'cause I hardly ever feel bad for him."

Yahiko chuckled. "I know it's how he shows his affection. Isn't that right, Itachi?"

"Of course. And to my defense, lately I've only made him cry a handful of times. When he was younger, I used to make him cry daily."

Sasuke glared at his brother. "He used to torture me. Literally. While other siblings were playing tag or throwing around a football, my brother used to re-enact internment camp scenarios. I'd end up playing the part of the prisoner, and he wouldn't let me go outside and play until I revealed my government's secrets."

"This sounds... oddly detailed and sadistic, Itachi. What the heck?" Naruto cried.

"At the time, I was interested in becoming a history teacher so I'd been studying up on the military strategies involved with the World Wars, Vietnam, and the Korean Conflict. Who better to test out live-action war scenarios on than my little brother?"

"Man, Itachi," said Yahiko. "If I didn't know you so well, I'd be worried about how closely you tread the line between good and evil sometimes."

Naruto smirked. "You mean like would he ever go to the Dark Side?"

Casually, Yahiko placed an arm along the back of the seat, behind Naruto's head. "Even if he did, it would end like it did with Darth Vader. There'd be that glimmer of good left inside. Someone could save him if they tried."

"I wonder if that makes Sasuke Luke?" Naruto asked.

"I'll pass," said Sasuke. "I'd be Han Solo. You're more like Luke. You're both whiny brats."

"Hey!" Naruto pointed at him. "I would never make out with my sister."

"You might if you thought she was hot and you didn't know the two of you were related. All she'd have to do is try out for cheerleading and you'd be all over her."

"Why you - "

"Cheerleaders do it for you?" Yahiko asked. "That surprises me."

Naruto rubbed the back of his head. "Sasuke seems to think so 'cause the two girls I've dated from our school happened to be."

"The way Itachi always talked about you and Sasuke, I ended up being surprised to hear that you're straight. I wouldn't say I was ever bullied for being out as a bisexual guy, but there were a few boys in my high school who didn't want to have anything to do with me once they found out. I'm glad he's been able to find a friend like you that he can trust and talk to."

Naruto gave it some thought. "What drew me to Sasuke was that he told me upfront. I remember bein' impressed by that, but yeah, we have guys like that at our high school. Uh. I mean. Sasuke's not really out at school, which you already know, so it's not much of an issue for him."

"And it's not an issue for you," said Yahiko. "You two seem as close as brothers."

He grinned cheekily. "You and Itachi seem pretty tight."

Yahiko, smiling widely, leaned in especially close. "Jealous?"

Naruto laughed loudly. "Kinda, yeah. It's Itachi, after all."

For a second, Naruto's eyes caught Sasuke's in the mirror.

"What?" He asked. "I like your brother. Get over it."

"You like me?" Itachi asked. "Is this a confession? How unexpected. Should I pull over?"

"Tch." He crossed his arms. "Maybe if you were bein' serious."

"Hn. You did look good with those skates on, Naruto. I'm always impressed by your athletic prowess as Sasuke was never interested in sports while growing up."

"Hey," said Sasuke. "I'm on the track team, you realize?"

"Even monkeys can run, Sasuke. Don't get cocky," Itachi replied. "Yahiko, you should see Naruto play baseball. Their team did very well this summer. They put him on the varsity team when he was only a sophomore. In fact, he received a scholarship from the school to play."

"Is that so?" Yahiko asked. "You look like you're in good shape. I didn't play sports much myself. Wasn't exactly my scene." He pointed to the collection of piercings in one of his ears.

"Do you have other piercings?" He asked. "I mean besides your ears?"

"I do. Would you like to know where?"

"Don't ask," said Itachi. "He's collected some new ones over the past few months."

"Really?" He asked anyway. "Like, down there?"

Yahiko let out a surprised chuckle. "I don't think Sasuke would like me to elaborate."

Naruto looked over, but Sasuke was staring out the passenger window. "Hmm. I was only curious. Y'know, if you had one of _those_. Did it hurt? Does it make sex better?"

"Naruto, really?" Sasuke did turn around this time.

"What? I'm curious."

"It's okay," said Yahiko. "I can tell you that it hurt somewhat, and... as for the other. I've had some compliments, yes."

Naruto made a face. "I don't think I could do that."

"Have sex with someone who had their penis pierced?" Itachi asked. "Take note, Sasuke."

Naruto flipped him off. "I meant get my dick pierced. What did it ever do to me that I'd have someone shove a huge needle through it?"

Yahiko laughed again. "You remind me of Hidan and Kisame. They always say what they think, too. He'd fit right in with your friends from high school wouldn't you say, Itachi?"

"He already does fit in with them," replied Itachi. "I think Deidara has a crush on him if I'm not mistaken. Kimimaro, too."

"Huh..." Naruto broke into a grin. "Really? Kimimaro?"

"Look at that," Yahiko teased him. "He's actually happy. Are you sure you're straight?"

He shrugged. "Even as a straight guy, I can tell you Kimimaro's a pretty good lookin' guy."

They pulled into the parking lot of the pizza place. Itachi left the car running, and Yahiko offered to go in with him since they'd ordered salads and appetizers.

"What are you smiling at?" Sasuke asked when they were alone. "Did you receive another dirty photo from Sai?"

"I didn't realize I was smiling."

"Do you like having attention that much?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "I'm surprised you're so interested in Yahiko's penis given that you hated his guts for the past eight months. Not to mention you're flirting with him. You do remember he's bisexual?"

He frowned. "We're only joking around. I woulda figured you'd be happy that I'm bein' nice. If you don't want me to talk to him, just say so. We can switch seats and you can sit next to him."

"You're an idiot." Sasuke turned around again and started messing with the radio.

By then, Itachi and Yahiko returned. Naruto helped them with the bags of food, setting some in his lap and placing the 2-liter of Coke on the floor in between his feet.

"That smells great," he said.

"There'll be just enough time to eat before everyone comes over," said Itachi. "How does a bonfire sound? With father not feeling well, we should try to keep everybody out of the house if possible."

"I always like when we do that," he said. "Remind me not to drink too much. Last night was pretty rough."

"Did you say you went out with your friend to a gay club?" Yahiko asked.

"Yeah, they're more fun than the other ones," Naruto admitted. "Sai's my best friend. He always shows me a good time."

"I see," said Yahiko. "So Sasuke has competition, eh?"

"It's not like that." His gaze slid to Sasuke, who was pretending not to pay attention. His comment earlier was making him all self-conscious now.

"It's not? I'd find it hard to believe that a young gay man wouldn't have any interest in you. Blond jock? That would've been the ultimate fantasy for a lot of us bi guys in high school. If I was your age, I might give those cheerleaders a run for their money."

In any other instance, Naruto figured he would've reacted differently to being hit on by an another guy (besides Sasuke), but the way Yahiko talked to him made him feel - well, attractive. He caught himself grinning and had to look away because he knew he was starting to blush. It's not like he was taking Yahiko seriously or anything, but he was a good looking guy. He was nice and didn't mind talking to Naruto even though he was five years younger and obviously not as smart as the friends he hung out with at Stanford. In a way, Yahiko reminded him of Itachi. When Itachi praised him, it felt good, so with Yahiko flattering him, it... kind of had the same effect.

"Heh." He scratched his cheek. "I'm sure your girlfriend would take issue with that."

"Girlfriend?"

"Yeah," he said. "Aren't you datin' someone... uh I think her name was Konan, right?"

"Ah. Actually..." Yahiko tilted his head, the corners of his mouth turning down into a pensive frown. "We're on a break, I guess you'd call it."

"Sorry, man. I feel like an idiot. I didn't know."

"You and Konan aren't together?" Sasuke asked, turning in his seat.

Naruto wasn't surprised it was a topic he'd take interest in. Figures.

"Didn't I tell you?" Itachi asked. "It was before we left. It's why she went to her parents' home for the holiday instead of coming here with us."

Yahiko shrugged. "These things happen. It's not the first time we've taken some time to do our own things."

"So, you'll get back together soon?" Naruto asked.

"Why? Are you worried about me?" The older man's smile was genuine.

"Just think it's sad when two people are together for so long and then... they're not."

"I'm sure it'll work out how it's supposed to," Yahiko told him. "It means I don't have to feel guilty about talking to good looking high school boys."

Okay, Naruto could be pretty dense, but he _almost_ felt like Yahiko was flirting with him. He didn't known him well enough to say. Maybe he was only teasing like all the other guys did.

Only a few blocks from the house, the rest of the ride was pretty quiet except the occasional sound of his stomach growling from being able to smell all of this food. Pennywise's "Fuck Authority" was playing on Sirius as they pulled into the driveway. The four of them got out of the car and started carrying everything into the house.

Sasuke held open the front door for everyone, but Naruto caught a look from him that made him pause in the entryway.

"What?" He asked.

Sasuke simply stared. "Nothing."

"Am I gettin' too chummy with your boyfriend or something?"

He noticed the way Sasuke's eyes narrowed and figured he'd hit the nail on the head.

"Tch. I'm not gonna stop you if that's what you want. Even though you said you wouldn't be interested so long as I'm here."

"I'm _not_ interested," Sasuke replied calmly. "You, on the other hand, I'm not so sure."

"Huh?"

"How about you bring that into the kitchen so I can close the door?" Sasuke gave him a kick to get him moving. "We can talk about it later."

He frowned. "I don't even know what we're talkin' about now."

Naruto entered the kitchen and helped set out all the food buffet-style even though he was distracted by Sasuke's words. Itachi went upstairs to let Mikoto and Fugaku know that dinner was here. He took a moment to observe Sasuke and Yahiko assist one another with getting out plates, silverware, and glasses. The two of them fell into a conversation about Sasuke's band and the recent shows he'd played. They talked so easily together that, once again, he thought that maybe they really would make a good… couple.

He decided the right thing to do was to give them some privacy.

"Uh, I'm gonna go to the bathroom," he said, "Be right back."

He ended up going into Sasuke's room, where he automatically went straight to the closet to steal a sweatshirt. Afterward, he took a seat on the corner of the bed, looking over all of Sasuke's photos taped to the wall or pinned to the board above one of the nightstands. There were several with him in them. Eventually he got up and headed into the bathroom to relieve himself and wash his hands. For a while, he stared at his face in the mirror, trying to pick out the features that resembled his mother's. He started wondering if Sasuke had made the most of his alone time with Yahiko. Now that he knew Yahiko was single, there didn't seem to be any reason to stop something from happening between those two.

There was a knock on the door.

"Just how long are you going to be in there?" Sasuke asked.

He went to open the door. "Can't a guy have a little privacy while he's doin' his business?"

"The food will get cold." Sasuke stood there, with his hands in the pockets of his jeans. "You're wearing a sweatshirt. Are you really that cold?"

He opened his mouth to speak, but then he ended up changing his mind. When Sasuke gave him a questioning look, he shook his head.

"Nevermind."

Sasuke took a couple of steps closer and gingerly reached for one of the strings on the sweatshirt. "You're being weird today. Even for you."

He watched Sasuke's fingers as they played with the string. "I'm bein' considerate is what I think you mean."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "Considerate? What are you talking about?"

Naruto pressed his teeth into his bottom lip. "Do you really think nothin's gonna happen between you and Yahiko tonight? I mean, you seemed pretty excited by the fact he and Konan broke up."

"Even if I did care, what does it matter to you exactly?" Sasuke let go of the string to regard him carefully.

"What I said earlier… still stands. He seems like a decent guy, after all."

"What is this? Are you giving me your blessing to mess around with him tonight?"

He rubbed the back of his neck, unexpectedly nervous. "I mean, yeah. If you even needed it to begin with. I don't wanna get in your way."

Sasuke, looking up at the ceiling first, shook his head and sighed. "I'm going to go eat."

He walked out of the bathroom, but Naruto attempted to catch up to him in the hall. He managed to grab Sasuke by the arm and pull him aside.

"Are you… mad at me about something?" He wouldn't say Sasuke looked or sounded all that mad, but why did it feel like everything he said or did today was the wrong thing?

"I'm not mad," Sasuke answered neutrally. "I'm… being reflective."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"It means maybe I don't know as much about you as I thought I did."

Naruto let him go. He had no idea what Sasuke meant by that, but, in a way, it hurt his feelings. Putting some space between them, he rubbed the back of his head and glanced toward the other end of the hallway where he could see Itachi's bedroom door.

"Look, I dunno what I've done… but… there aren't a lot of people who know me as well as you do, Sasuke." He turned back to look at him and was hit with an intense urge to touch him.

"I didn't mean it in a bad way," Sasuke replied in a gentle voice. "It was me being self-deprecating. Anyway, we should get back before all the pizza's gone. Father's still not feeling well, so mother's bringing him up some tea and soup."

"Wow. He's still not feelin' well? I thought for sure he'd be up and around by now."

"Mother says he'll be fine." He pressed a hand to Naruto's lower back. "Come on. Make a plate before Itachi and Yahiko eat everything. By the way, that sweatshirt looks good on you."

Naruto snorted and broke into a grin. "It's yours. I figured you woulda recognized it since you always say it's one of your favorites."

"I know it's mine." Sasuke gave him one of those rare smiles that almost made Naruto regret being unable to kiss him. "That's why it looks good on you."

"Tch, bastard. Stop flirtin' with me," he said playfully. "That goes against our boundaries and stuff."

Sasuke lowered his voice as they approached the kitchen. "Well, I suppose I'll have to let Deidara get you drunk enough that you end up forgetting all about _boundaries_."


	6. Cheap Thrills III

After they finished eating, Itachi and Yahiko made a run to the store to pick up some alcohol for tonight's bonfire. He was surprised Naruto didn't want to tag along as attached as he'd become to Yahiko. Instead, the two of them were hanging out in his room. Sasuke was on the computer trying to book some shows for next month. He'd even started being paid by other bands since he'd built a lot of relationships with different bar and venue owners over the past couple of years. Naruto was sprawled across his bed, probably talking to his other boyfriend, Sai. It was unnerving to have him around and yet he was being incredibly quiet. It almost made him nervous.

"Naruto," he said, turning in his chair, "Why don't you go downstairs and play video games by yourself until they get back?"

"Huh? Why would I do that?" He didn't even look up from his phone.

"Because. You're being so quiet that it's irritating me."

"I thought I'd be nice and let you work!"

"What are you doing?" He got up from the chair and strolled over to the foot of the bed.

"It's called social networking," Naruto replied dryly, "It involves networking... socially?"

He climbed on top of the duvet and plucked the phone from his fingers without trying to look at the screen. Turning the power button off, he set it on one of the side tables.

"What's that about?" Naruto asked. "You acted like you had things to do."

"When did you start becoming so thoughtful of other people?"

Since Naruto was laying the wrong way across his bed, Sasuke flipped onto his back and rested his head on Naruto's side, legs hanging over the edge. He clasped his fingers together on his stomach and let out a contented sigh.

"Comfortable?" Naruto asked, reaching for one of the pillows and stuffing it under his head.

Sasuke made a small noise of discontent as he was jostled with the movement.

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure," said Naruto. "What's up?"

"How did Sai confess to you? I mean, what were the circumstances?"

"I really shouldn't have told you about that."

"I won't say anything." He made a face. "I'm only curious."

"If you want dating advice, why don't you just ask him."

"Like hell," he murmured, closing his eyes. "Tell me."

"Well, like I said. It was after Kayla and I broke up, and, since you weren't really in the mood to console me, Sai offered to take me out. We ended up havin' a pretty good time hangin' out with his friends and goin' to dinner near the pier and then some coffee shop that was doin' an open mic thing–"

"This sounds like a date already, you realize?" He could only imagine Sai planning an evening where he tried to set the mood and then ask Naruto out or whatever his intentions were.

"I didn't think much of it at the time 'cause he and I usually do stuff like that, though it's not very often we go out to dinner. Probably shoulda known better when he paid for it."

"I pay for your dinner all the time," Sasuke muttered.

"Do you wanna hear this story or not, you ass? Also, up until a month ago, you were gettin' somethin' out of buyin' me dinner, so shut it."

He chuckled despite himself. "Carry on."

"Where was I?"

Likely, Naruto didn't realize when he started petting Sasuke's head. It felt too good and familiar for him to say anything about it. He hoped the idiot wouldn't notice.

"Open mic night at the coffee shop," he reminded him.

"Right, yeah. So we went there, and it was a lot of fun. I remember thinkin' the girl playin' guitar on stage was pretty hot."

"Poor Sai. He didn't have a chance, did he?"

Naruto stopped playing with his hair. "Sorry," he mumbled. "Force of habit."

"No worries. Continue."

"Don't laugh, but I wanted to take a ferry ride. So, we got on the ferry and went over to Bainbridge Island, got some ice cream, and headed back. On the way, we were up on the top deck, near the front. We were sittin' on a bench together when he just... said he'd basically had feelings for me since early on and that he didn't expect anything, but he wanted me to know."

"That's admirable," Sasuke replied.

"It was. I remember bein' really flattered. I didn't wanna hurt his feelings, but I felt like... if I was honest, then he could try to move on, and we could keep bein' friends."

"He didn't try to kiss you, did he?"

"If he did," said Naruto, shifting onto his elbows to look at him, "Would that be any of your business?"

"It definitely would've clued me into you being a little more heteroflexible than previously stipulated."

"What's that mean?"

"The actual words I used or the meaning behind them?" He rolled away from him since Naruto kept moving around.

"I have never kissed Sai if that's what you're asking."

"That's not what I was asking," he replied calmly. "I know you, Naruto. Even if you didn't mention the confession–you would've told me if something like that happened. Not because you were obligated to, but because we typically tell each other everything. Don't we?"

The expression on Naruto's face changed from annoyance to... well, he wasn't sure, but the sudden smile on his face made Sasuke's heart skip.

"Yeah," said Naruto. "We do. I'm sorry for not tellin' you about Sai, but I guess the timing seemed off, and I took care of it."

"It wasn't my business. It was a private moment between you and Sai."

"Why are you...?" Naruto started to ask, but when his cheeks turned red, he glanced away while rubbing at the side of his nose.

How many times had he seen that gesture exactly? It made Sasuke want to tackle him.

He shifted around so that he could sit cross legged in front of him. He always got the best answers when he was firm and direct with Naruto.

"Why am I what?" He reached for the end of the teen's pant leg and tugged.

"Why are you," Naruto searched his face, "... saying all the right things?"

He smiled, albeit lop-sidedly. "What did you say earlier? It's called 'being considerate'."

Naruto continued to look at him like he was speaking in Japanese.

"Are you at a loss for words without your new boyfriend?" He teased.

"I was only being nice, Sasuke. Here I thought you were bein' so charming for a second. I thought maybe an alien had taken over your body."

"Is that something you'd be into?" He asked, leaving Naruto's pant leg alone in order to lean back on his arms.

"Maybe if you had tentacles for arms. Aren't the Japanese really into that kind of thing?"

"Racist," he remarked flippantly and smirked.

"Seriously." Naruto went to lean against the headboard. He crossed his legs at the ankles; Sasuke saw that he was wearing mismatched socks today. "Are you flirting with me or just fucking with me right now?"

"Mostly the latter," he replied, "But only because you won't let me do the former."

He shook his head. "Do you think it's possible your brother thought it would be funny to drug your pizza? Like, maybe he put roofies in it. Is that possible?"

"Anything is possible when it comes to my brother," he said.

Naruto hummed, eyeing him suspiciously the entire time.

"What?"

"You. You're weird. I can't tell if you really want me to cockblock you from Yahiko, or you're so annoyed that I was talkin' with him earlier that you're jerking me around, and I'm too dumb to even realize what you're doing."

"I told you," he replied, very close to reaching for that piece of hair in front of Naruto's left eye. "I'm not interested in doing anything with him so long as you're here."

"But, why?"

"Because I gave my word."

"You don't owe me anything, and I already said that I liked the guy. I thought he'd be more... perverty. But he's not at all. I dunno what you did to get him to sleep with you, but I'm leaning toward witchcraft or, again, the drugs."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "You act like every time you go out someone tries to drug you. You're awfully paranoid. Should I be worried?"

"Do you or _don't_ you wanna have some alone time with him? 'Cause if you do, then I could at least stay in the spare room upstairs, and maybe he could sneak–"

"Naruto," he said, getting frustrated. "Shut up."

Naruto did shut up, but that didn't stop him from glaring.

"He and I are still friendly," Sasuke attempted to explain. "Also, think about it. How thrilled would my brother be if the two of us were flirting in front of him? I'm sure Yahiko doesn't want Itachi to know what happened, so I really don't think he'd be that interested."

"Okay... if you say so then. I just... don't wanna get in the way of somethin' you might want."

Sasuke felt a little guilty for making him worry. "Besides, he seems to have taken a liking to you."

Naruto rolled his eyes. "He's _nice_ , and he's easy to talk to. He's different than Itachi's other friends. You must've thought so, too, since he's the one you wanted to lose your virginity to."

Sasuke regarded him quietly until Naruto slid off of the bed to stretch. He kept his eyes on Sasuke, too. In their shared look, he felt some kind of unspoken tension.

When was this feeling of wanting to spontaneously hold or kiss him going to go away? Sometimes it wasn't all that easy to abide by Naruto's new rules. They didn't touch, but the desire to remained. All Naruto would have to do was call it off, and Sasuke would be on him in a heartbeat. It was both thrilling and terrifying to know someone evoked this in him. He was always so composed, but in this moment of stillness and silence between them, he felt that passion stirring to life. The kind that was unpredictable and even dangerous.

Did Naruto know? When Naruto looked at him, did he know that he could flip him on like a switch?

Sasuke would give him everything if he asked, but Naruto never would. He was too self-sacrificing and principled. Sure, they both had their moments of weakness, but he knew Naruto was committed to making sure nothing happened. There was no one to blame but himself for where they were now in their friendship; if he wouldn't have slept with the DJ, then would things be different right now? Could he push Naruto down on the bed, feel his body heat up underneath him, and let his hands roam all over?

Naruto, who was particular with the people he chose to be with like that–how many others wanted him the way Sasuke did? Besides the girls in their school, besides Sai. How many people looked at Naruto when he went out to the clubs, talked to him and learned how funny and charming he could be, or had the opportunity to see one of those smiles that made Sasuke wish he had the balls to do what Sai did? How many of them wanted what Sasuke lost the privilege to?

What about Yahiko? Sasuke thought the older man was mostly being polite, but after listening to their conversation in the car, he could tell that he was not unaware or even immune to Naruto's charms. He also knew that the way Naruto spoke and the interest he showed in other people could easily be construed as flirting. But, it wasn't very realistic to think Yahiko would try anything, and even less believable that Naruto had any awareness of what he was doing.

When neither of them said anything for a while, Naruto picked up his phone and slid it into his back pocket without turning it on. He was watching Sasuke the way Sasuke was watching him.

Then, there was a knock on his door.

"Yeah?" Naruto answered.

"Are you and Sasuke decent?" Itachi asked.

Naruto walked around the bed to go open the door. "What is it you think we're doin' all the time?"

"I'd rather not describe it exactly," Itachi replied. "They're both dressed, so it's okay to come in."

Yahiko stood behind his brother and, gently, gave Itachi a push forward.

"You act like every time they have an opportunity, they're goin' at it like rabbits," said Yahiko.

The both of them came into his room. Itachi ruffled Naruto's hair.

"Is that my brother's sweatshirt?" He asked. "I didn't notice it before."

"It is. I couldn't fit one into my bag," said Naruto. "So I stole it."

"It looks good on you," said Yahiko.

"Yeah?" Naruto burst into a grin, and Sasuke groaned internally.

Maybe he was wrong. Maybe he should be worried. He'd definitely have to make sure to keep Naruto away from the alcohol tonight.

"The guys should be here in about 10 minutes," Itachi announced. "So, if the two of you would like to assist us outside. Naruto, I know how much you like to start fires."

"Ah, that's the part I enjoy, too," said Yahiko.

"We can do it together." Naruto folded his arms behind his head. "But I get to squirt the lighter fluid on the pile."

"Deal." Yahiko was smiling at him and, eventually, put a hand to Naruto's lower back to usher him out of the room. "Should we get to it then?"

Sasuke watched but without realizing how transparent he was being.

"Sasuke."

He'd almost forgotten that his brother was there.

"What's going on inside your head that you have such a scary look on your face?"

"I'm not crazy," Sasuke insisted. "There's definitely something going on with those two."

"I seriously doubt it. Don't you think you're being paranoid? Naruto's straight, after all."

Sasuke gave him a look.

"You're obviously the exception," Itachi corrected quickly. "There's no way Yahiko would try anything. You know him better than that."

"I'm not so sure."

Itachi put a hand on his shoulder. "You do realize Naruto is his own person. You two aren't dating underneath my nose, are you?"

"No," he said, almost regretfully. "We're not dating."

"Naruto's been dating girls from your school."

It wasn't quite a statement or question, so Sasuke narrowed his eyes at his brother.

"I realize... it seems strange." Sasuke ran a hand through his hair, frustrated because he knew he only sounded jealous and paranoid. "But I can't shake this feeling that–"

He trailed off, touching two fingers to his lips as he experienced something akin to wonder. Like maybe he didn't know Naruto as well as he thought.

"Do you want me to have a word with Yahiko?" Itachi offered. "If you're that concerned, I could at least ask him what his intentions are. Personally, I think they're both friendly people, Sasuke. Unlike us. There are people like that who share a certain energy and are attracted to one another. It doesn't have to be _sexual_. Unless, of course, it's not Yahiko you're jealous of... but Naruto."

Sasuke's eyes moved quickly to his brother's face, but Itachi's expression was neutral.

"If you really don't want to leave the two of them alone," Itachi suggested, "Perhaps we should join them."

"I'm not really worried." Sasuke got to his feet. "I trust Naruto."

"Trust him to what?"

That was a valid question. Naruto wasn't obligated to do anything. He didn't _belong_ to Sasuke. Why was the thought of losing him to another man so much worse than Naruto dating pretty little cheerleaders? He didn't quite understand it, but really… it was more like a gut feeling than paranoia. It's like when he could just _tell_ another man was gay without the usual signs.

"Whatever happens," he said decidedly, brushing past Itachi. "It's fine."

"Good," replied his brother, "Then let's all just have a good time without any unnecessary drama, shall we?"

* * *

He and Yahiko had teamed up to get the firepit and seating all prepared. After everyone arrived, there was a lot of hugging and catching up. Mostly Naruto tackling everybody even though he saw them once in a while when he was bumming around downtown or going with Sasuke to one of his shows. There were a couple coolers, too, all filled with beer and other alcohol. After last night, he decided to take it easy by starting with a Bud Light. He was sitting in between Yahiko and Kimimaro, both of whom were having a conversation about the process of tattooing since Yahiko had a license. Naruto already knew that he'd been the one to pierce Deidara's belly-button. In fact, he'd already seen the piercing twice tonight thanks to the blond man's enthusiasm for revealing skin at any and every opportunity.

"What about you, Naruto?" Kimimaro nudged him. "Ever thought about getting a tattoo?"

"Once or twice," he replied. "My dad would kill me, though. Even if he was cool with it, I dunno what I'd get. How do you decide what you want?"

"Hm." Yahiko scratched at his chin. "In my experience it's either something of sentimental value or something they saw on the internet that they thought was cool. I have a few that ask me for some custom designs, but I usually only do that for friends."

"How many tattoos do you have at this point?" Kimimaro asked.

Naruto was curious, too. He'd seen the sleeve on his right arm while they were eating pizza, but who knew how many were under his clothes. Well, Sasuke, he supposed, since he'd seen him naked and all. He shook his head, not wanting to think about it.

"At this point?" Yahiko adjusted one of the cuffs on his sweatshirt. "Besides my arm... five."

"Five?" Naruto asked. "Where are they?"

"If I'd known you were so curious," he responded slyly, "I would've shown you before we came out here. I have one on my chest, one near my hip, two on my back, and a small one on my ankle. I thought about getting one on the back of my neck, but Konan told me to wait. I guess there's nothing stopping me now, eh?"

"I heard a rumor that she and you broke up," said Kimimaro. "I'm sorry to hear it's true."

"Yeah, but it sounds like the two of you are gonna get back together." Naruto gave Yahiko a friendly nudge in case this topic was too depressing.

"I'm sure we will." Yahiko gazed up at the sky. "I'm not worried. I think having some time to consider what you want is a good thing in a relationship."

"I wouldn't know," said Naruto. "I think I'm pretty bad with commitment. Not, like, being loyal or whatever, but... I dunno. I start to wonder–okay, where is this going? It's obviously not gonna last since we're both in high school."

"I take it you aren't talking about Sasuke." Kimimaro gave him a pat on his knee. "How did he handle it? When you told him you'd be dating girls from your school?"

"How did he handle it?" Naruto repeated. "Why does everyone always act as if he and I are in a relationship?"

"Because sometimes it seems like you are. I've seen how the two of you are when you're together. I get your circumstances, but I'm just saying. I know how I would feel if I was in Sasuke's position."

"How _would_ you feel?" Naruto asked thoughtfully.

"I'm sure Yahiko can back me up on this, but when you're a man who likes other men, there comes a time when you find someone that becomes worth the trouble. It's common with us–gay men in particular–to use and abuse. When we're younger, we're not always looking for something serious, but when you find someone who you'd like to sleep with more than once... well. Not that I'm saying you and Sasuke have that sort of relationship–" He gave Naruto a look, but he made sure to keep his face from giving anything away, "I think he cares about you. A man wouldn't have to be in love with his straight friend to feel jealous or hurt. I think it... just comes with the territory sometimes."

"And Sasuke is a very complex kid," Yahiko added. "I think we can relate to the fact that he's not ready to come out to Fugaku and Mikoto, or everyone at school, but he's intense and mature for only being 17. I'm sure he feels things and thinks about things more deeply than the average teenager."

Kimimaro nodded. "Definitely. If he was older and wasn't Itachi's younger brother, I can't say I'd be able to resist. I'd at least buy him a drink if we were at a bar and I spotted him out. When he gets older, that kid's definitely going to be a heartbreaker."

Yahiko chuckled. "I completely agree."

Naruto listened to the two of them talking about Sasuke and could never deny how amazing Sasuke was as a person. Over the summer, he'd been more than sensitive to Sasuke's moods while he was dating those girls. Sasuke was as polite as he could be to them, and he never complained to Naruto about it. There were just times he knew that Sasuke wasn't exactly ecstatic. They did argue more than usual during those times, but it was never actually about him dating anyone. It would always be about something else, even small, stupid things.

"Well," Yahiko said, putting an arm around Naruto's shoulders. "You shouldn't feel like you have to ask his permission to do what's natural for boys your age."

"Can I ask you guys somethin' personal? Or, I guess this is more directed at you," he said to Yahiko. "How did you... when did you realize that you liked girls _and_ guys?"

Yahiko chuckled and, removing his arm, scratched the back of his head. "Freshman year in high school. Maybe before I had a couple of thoughts about certain classmates. The weird experimentation shit you do with your friends that no one talks about. But by then I knew for sure that I was physically attracted to boys. I hung with a group of pretty emo skater kids, so it was... not uncommon for us to hang out on the weekend, drink, get high, and experiment."

"It was that easy?" He asked. "Did you, y'know, is there even a comin' out process for bisexuals?"

Kimimaro laughed this time and drank from the red solo cup in his hand. Naruto wondered if it was a dumb question to ask, but no one ever really made a big deal about being bisexual, at least not compared to coming out as gay.

"I didn't really come out as bisexual. I guess I mentioned it to my mom–I never knew my real dad–but it was sort of like: I'm going on a date with, Jonathan. See you later, Mom."

"That's kinda cool," said Naruto. "That your mom was chill about it."

"We're close. I think she prefers when I'm with women, but she's never said anything bad about any boyfriend I've had, or if she sees some picture of me kissing another man. She only cares about whether I'm a good person or not or whether I'm happy."

Kimimaro nodded. "I'm one of the few in this group that didn't have much issue with coming out. No one in my family was even surprised."

"I think Fugaku will be hella surprised," said Naruto, "But, honestly, I dunno how."

"What about you?" Yahiko asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Your two best friends are gay. You go to gay clubs. You hang out with us. I was just wondering if you'd ever been curious about it?"

"I've been wondering that, too," said Kimimaro. "None of us are very sure about the extent of your friendship with Sasuke. It's none of our business, Naruto, if you don't want to talk about it. And anything you say stays with us. Obviously we'd be able to help you with any advice if you had questions. If not about your own interests, but about Sasuke. We were that age once, so we know what it's like and how confusing things can be."

"I appreciate it," he said, feeling a little uncomfortable to say the least. "I... wouldn't feel great about talking about it with Sasuke not here."

"Why? What are you talking about?"

Sasuke approached from the other side of the fire without any of them noticing. He'd been talking to Itachi, Jirōbō, Deidara, and Hidan earlier, and they were all over by the shed.

"Growing pains," Yahiko told him with a smile.

Sasuke glanced at Naruto. "Whatever they're trying to get out of you, best not to tell them or everyone will end up knowing."

"That's not true," Kimimaro argued. "He can trust Yahiko. And me. It's only guy talk. Sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll. You're welcome to join us if you feel so inclined."

"Thanks. I'll pass. Last time that topic came up with all of you here, I got a lecture from Itachi."

"What kind of lecture?" Yahiko asked.

Naruto watched Sasuke, wondering what he'd say considering it had all come about thanks to Deidara revealing Sasuke had lost his virginity. Supposedly, Naruto was the only one who knew the truth.

Sasuke shook his head. "It wasn't anything. Just Deidara opening his big mouth."

"It was about Sasuke losing his virginity as I recall," Kimimaro commented.

The air got a little tense. With Yahiko sitting next to him, Naruto felt him shift just the slightest bit. He and Sasuke appeared to be avoiding making eye contact, so Naruto wanted to help diffuse the situation.

"It's no one any of you guys would know anyway," he said, almost feeling bad about lying to Kimimaro, "Some douche from our school. He graduated last year."

"Douche?" Kimimaro repeated. "I'm disappointed, Sasuke. I would've thought you had better taste than that. Were you in a rush to get it over with?"

Sasuke was looking at him, but then his gaze strayed to Kimimaro.

"I don't think my sex life is anybody's business but my own."

"That's true," said Kimimaro. "We think of you as a little brother is all. We only worry about you. As long as you're being smart, it's all good."

"Well," said Sasuke. "I'll leave you to your conversation." He abruptly turned away and went back to the other group.

"Maybe I shouldn't have brought it up?" Kimimaro asked, addressing them both. "Why didn't you say anything, Yahiko? He always listens to whatever you say."

"Ah, well." Yahiko smiled, but it was strained as he stared into the fire. "I don't think I'd be the best person to advise him about that kind of thing."

"Sasuke's smart," said Naruto. "He might do some dumb things on occasion, but considering how much thought he puts into everything he does, I'm not worried about him."

Yahiko glanced his way and, this time, spared him a more genuine smile. "I like to hear you talk about him."

"You do?" He asked. "Why?"

The older man shook his head and played with one of the piercings in his ear. "Because. I know I would've loved to have had someone talk about me that way at your guys' age. I almost wish you weren't straight, Naruto, because I think you'd be a perfect match for someone like Sasuke."

"It is a shame," said Kimimaro. "I've thought the same. But, at least you two both really care about each other. Sometimes it's better to just be friends than lovers. That can overcomplicate things."

"No kidding," he muttered under his breath and got to his feet. "I think m'gonna go grab another drink. You want anything?"

"No," they both declined.

They waved him off, and Naruto walked closer to the shed where the others had gathered in lawn chairs. From what he could hear, they were talking about some bill that had recently passed through the House that would–well, he stopped paying attention. Politics wasn't really his thing, so he made a beeline for one of the coolers. He grabbed a cup and poured a variety of liquors into it. By the time he was done, he felt as if someone was staring at the back of his head.

"Want something?" He asked, knowing it was Sasuke without having to turn around.

"Are you bartender for the evening?"

Naruto finished putting away the vodka, closed the cooler, and turned to face him.

"That conversation got a little too intense, so I thought I'd make a drink," he said.

"How exactly did my sex life come up in conversation?"

He tilted his head, looking toward the fire where Yahiko and Kimimaro sat. "We were talkin' about tattoos, and then we were talkin' about bein' gay, and then they kept askin' me stuff about you."

"I'm not sure I follow how one led to the other, but... you didn't have to lie, you know. I know you don't like to."

"Yeah, well. It seemed easier than you or Yahiko havin' to give it away or have you make up some weird story. They'd already thought it was someone from school, so I just bought you more time if you ever really want them to know the truth."

"Why would I want them to know?" Sasuke asked. "It's none of their business anyway."

"Well, _I_ know that, jerk. I'm just sayin'."

Sasuke grabbed the cup from his hand and drank out of it. "Mm. Not bad."

He handed it back to Naruto.

"Sai's been teachin' me," he said.

"Ah. Makes sense. I'm glad he's been able to teach you so many things."

"He's even been tryin' to teach me to dance since I suck at it and embarrass him when we go out."

Sasuke arched a brow. "He's been... _teaching_ you to dance? Private lessons, I assume?"

"You know, you're bein' so not cute right now."

"Sorry, it's because I only know how to associate with douches apparently."

He frowned. "I hope you don't mean me."

"Of course not." Sasuke smirked. "I mean my imaginary lover who graduated last year. What was his name again?"

"I doubt you took the time to ask," he muttered.

Sasuke laughed and started to reach for a piece of Naruto's hair only to retract his hand. His arm fell to his side and the corners of his mouth turned down into a frown.

"It's not as if I'm gonna smack you if you do it," Naruto assured him.

"It's a hard habit to break, but I'm... trying."

"I know you are." He bit his lip.

"You still bite your lip."

Naruto rubbed them together instead. "Force of habit."

For a second, he started to think back to the things Kimimaro and Yahiko said about Sasuke earlier. How complex and enigmatic he was. Often times he hoped for someone to come along that would be perfect for him. Sasuke had a lot to offer a partner, though it never felt to him as if a relationship was something he was ready for. It always felt as if Sasuke was resigned to wait until college before he'd come out and try to date anyone for real.

It made him understand all the more why one-night stands might become appealing to his friend. He didn't really want that for Sasuke, but it wasn't his choice to make. Now that he'd been able to get to know Yahiko, he felt more at ease. Sasuke had wanted to sleep with him of all people, and he wasn't a dick. He was a nice guy. Naruto wouldn't have guessed he'd be the type to bang his best friend's little brother, but he wasn't there when it happened and didn't know the circumstances. Yahiko obviously didn't want others to find out and seemed uncomfortable when the topic came up, but it was also apparent that he cared about and thought highly of Sasuke, so... as first time goes, Naruto didn't have any right to complain. If that night at the house party had been Sasuke's first time–now that might've pissed him off even if it was hypocritical on his part. Sasuke was his friend. He wanted what was best for him. If he was going to be sleeping with guys, maybe Naruto should ask to be able to cross-examine them thoroughly beforehand?

"Naruto," said Sasuke, waving a hand in front of his face. "You spaced out."

"I did?"

"Don't drink too much tonight, alright? I don't want to have to hold your hair back when you throw up. Although, I'm sure that's something Sai would be happy to do. We can always give him a call and invite him over."

"Tch. You've always been so jealous of Sai, I swear." He smiled anyway. "You know, you have other friends besides me, too. You're always playin' with different bands. I don't even ask about that Yagura guy anymore since you swore that he was harmless."

"Ah." Sasuke looked off guiltily.

"Jesus. If you tell me he tried something–"

"If he tried something," both of Sasuke's eyebrows went up, "What? What would you do?"

"Beat the shit out of him obviously and then slap you around for letting an asshole like that anywhere near you."

"Hn."

"Don't look so cocky," Naruto told him, "I'm your friend. Of course I'd prefer you not hang around guys like that."

"That only makes me not want to tell you anything." Sasuke took the cup from him again and drank most of what was left.

"That's your choice to make, but I thought we talked about this earlier. Things are always better when we're honest with each other."

"Most of the time," Sasuke replied in a reflective tone. "I know what you mean, but I think some things are best kept secret."

"Like what? Did something really happen with that guy? If you like him, then whatever, but if he did anything weird, I'd like you to tell me."

"He hits on me a lot is all," said Sasuke. "It's nothing I can't handle, and I am _not_ interested."

"Alright, well." Naruto glanced off to the side. He hated the idea of that scumbag hitting on Sasuke or even laying a finger on him, but it wasn't his place to say anything.

A few leaves crackled under his foot as Sasuke took a step closer. Naruto turned his head, looking at him. They were standing within less than a foot of one another.

"This should be okay," said Sasuke, "As it's only meant in a friendly way." He–while handing Naruto back his drink–leaned in, paused when Naruto could feel his breath on his jaw, and then kissed him on the cheek.

When he leaned back, Sasuke was smiling as he slipped his hands into his pockets and walked away.

Naruto watched his back, his heart still racing from when Sasuke'd started to lean in like that. He touched his cheek. What was that for... and why was he a little disappointed that it had only been that much?

He gave a sigh. Okay, time to quit lying to himself. With a sudden burst of determination, he returned to the bonfire despite Deidara's plea for him to join them. Yahiko and Kimimaro had been quietly talking but looked up when he approached.

"Did you make yourself somethin' good there, Naruto?" Yahiko asked.

"Uh, actually I was kinda wondering if I could ask you for a favor."

"Sure, what's up?"

"Kimimaro." Naruto gave him an apologetic look, but he thought this was something only Yahiko could help with. "Do you mind if I borrow Yahiko for a little while?"

He looked surprised by the request but nodded. "Okay. I'll see what everyone else is up to. No problem." After he got up, he gave Naruto a pat on the back.

"Did you have somethin' you wanted to talk about?" Yahiko asked, looking at him curiously.

Naruto rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah. I do, but it's kinda personal, so I was hoping maybe… we could take a walk?"

Yahiko nodded. "Of course."

Naruto waited while he got to his feet.

"Alright," said Yahiko, "Where are you taking me on this little date of ours?"

"Er. It's funny you mention that since I have a couple of questions I'd like to ask about that."

They started walking in the direction of the koi pond where he thought they might have more privacy.

"If you want dating advice, there are better people to ask than me. Like Itachi."

"I don't think he can, though," Naruto articulated slowly. "I kinda wanted to ask you more about…what it's like when you know you're attracted to women, but then… you also realize you find yourself feeling similar things for… a guy."

"Oh." He stopped walking; Naruto stopped, too. "We can talk about that." He put a hand to Naruto's back. "Like before, I hope you know you can speak to me in confidence."

"I know," he said. "I think I just realized… there's a small possibility that I'm…" He swallowed hard. "Not as straight as I think?"

* * *

Sasuke was sitting next to his brother, engaged in another political debate when Kimimaro decided to join their circle. He glanced toward the fire, wondering if Yahiko and Naruto were coming, too–only to see two figures walking toward the house.

"Don't I feel like a third wheel," Kimimaro said while taking a seat in one of the chairs.

"Huh. What are ya talking about?" Hidan asked.

Sasuke looked but could no longer even see them anymore. "Where are Naruto and Yahiko going?"

"Naruto just asked if he could talk to Yahiko in private. I'm sure they'll be back, but it makes me feel like I got kicked out of squad by the popular kids."

He wasn't exactly sure what those two would have to talk about, but, not wanting the others to hear, he spoke to his brother in Japanese. "Dakara itta daro?"

Itachi glanced at him, but he seemed calm. "Taishita kotojanai."

"Oh ho, they've broken out the Japanese," said Hidan. "Must be serious."

"Why would those to be wandering off together in the dark, I wonder?" Deidara asked. "What would he have to talk to Yahiko about in private? That makes me a little jealous." He sighed and flipped one of his braids over his shoulder. "Figures. Yahiko always attracts the good looking ones."

Jirōbō cleared his throat. "Whatever it is, they wanted privacy, so let's at least give them that."

Hidan gave a sharp whistle and grinned wolfishly. "That brat! Never woulda thought Naruto had it in him to go after an older guy. Or, a guy in general. Except maybe Sasuke."

At that point, everyone looked over at him. What was he supposed to say? He'd just spoken with Naruto less than five minutes ago. Had that kiss on the cheek pissed him off? Had he misread the mood and fucked up again by crossing a line after Naruto'd told him not to anymore?

"Sasuke." Itachi leaned closer, his voice low. "Do you want me to see what they're up to?"

The others fell into their own stupid chatter about what Yahiko and Naruto were up to. It was all a little too juvenile for his tastes. He honestly couldn't figure out what Naruto would have to talk to Yahiko about unless–

But that seemed impossible. He shook his head.

"Like I said earlier," he replied. "Whatever happens is fine. I trust Naruto."

"Hm. Now I'm starting to wonder if I can trust Yahiko." Itachi rubbed at his chin and then reached for his ponytail holder. He let his hair fall free. "What's he thinking?"

"You're actually worried? You just told me it wasn't a big deal."

"Ochitsuke," he murmured. "Maybe they went to get something from the house."

"Or maybe they went to go make out somewhere." Hidan laughed. "Aah. Youth. Yahiko is a very pretty guy. Does Naruto like 'em wild, Sasuke?"

"How should I know?" He barked. "Naruto's 17. He can do what he wants, but whatever you're imagining, I'm sure that's not the case, so leave it alone."

"Look at that. Personally, If I knew someone was sniffin' around the person I liked, I think I'd do something about it," said Hidan.

"Naruto and I aren't dating," he replied. "As much as everyone wants to pretend otherwise. He's straight. I'm gay. We're in high school, and he's my best friend. That's all there is to it."

The fire crackled when a piece of wood rolled off the pile. Everyone was quiet. He wished someone would say something to break the tension, and so he'd stop wondering what the hell was going on over there.

"Yahiko and Naruto have become buddies since they met," said Itachi. "That's all. They're very similar people, so I'm sure they're having a friendly chat."

"That's true," said Kimimaro. "We were talking about tattoos earlier, so maybe he wanted to ask Yahiko about that."

"Or, maybe he wanted to see the rest of Yahiko's tattoos up close and personal." Hidan started laughing at his own joke, but a couple of the others did, too.

"Leave poor Sasuke alone," said Deidara. "If Naruto's going to go after any of us, it'd obviously be me. Everyone knows blonds have the most fun. Out of all of you, I'm the one who could show him the funnest time, so I'm definitely not going to lose to Yahiko."

"You are the most feminine of the bunch," Jirōbō teased.

"I take that as a compliment," Deidara replied, raising his chin. "More importantly, shouldn't we talking about what are plans are for Christmas and what Itachi is going to be buying me this year?"

"Why me?" Itachi asked.

"Because I'm your favorite."

Thus, began a rather ridiculous conversation that Sasuke immediately tuned out. While glad they were talking about something other than Naruto and Yahiko, his mind began to wander back to earlier today. The worst case scenario was that those two were... doing exactly what Sasuke did when he had the chance to be alone with him more than a year ago. The best case scenario was... like Itachi'd said. They were running a quick errand to get something from inside of the house.

If they were back soon, there shouldn't be a problem, so he decided not to make a big deal about it because, after all... he knew Naruto, and he wouldn't do anything out of character no matter how his paranoia continued to grow.

* * *

He could hear laughter coming from over by the fire as Yahiko sat beside him on the grass, next to the pond. All of the fish were being stored somewhere else for the winter.

"Wonder what they're laughin' about," he mumbled.

"Hard to say," Yahiko answered. "There are some characters in that group."

"I feel bad for askin' Kimimaro to give us privacy. After all, the both of you offered to help me earlier, but I kinda thought–"

"He'll understand. But, I am curious. Why you think I can help you? Is it simply because I like men and women?"

"Kinda, yeah," he answered with a nod and leaned back on his arms. Naruto looked up at the sky. He figured by now Sasuke would've noticed the two of them were gone and hoped he wouldn't start thinking anything weird in his head.

"Okay, I'm here to listen. Tell me what's going on, and I'll see if I can walk you through it."

Naruto took a deep breath. "By the way, this is super embarrassing."

"No need to be embarrassed. I'm surprised it hasn't come up before. Or, has it?"

"I... Sasuke and I–" He sighed again, unsure if he should talk about what their relationship was like, but he also trusted Yahiko and out of anyone else he knew, it just felt like he was the only one who could talk Naruto through this sexual identity crisis he was having.

"So, there is something going on with you and Sasuke?" Yahiko asked in a neutral way.

"I don't know."

"Has anything ever happened between the two of you?"

To be honest, it wasn't something he'd ever told anyone or even hinted at. He figured Itachi knew, but wondered if he even knew the extent of how physical their relationship was. There'd only been Sasuke, and any thoughts he'd ever had about "What are we to each other?" or "What does it mean that I'm doing this with a guy?"... there'd never been anyone for him to talk to. He wasn't as oblivious as Sasuke liked to think. He'd done his research on the internet. Hell, he'd even watched gay porn to figure out if maybe two guys together did something for him. But besides giving him ideas to use on Sasuke, it didn't really turn him on. Sai was his good friend who'd had those feelings for him, but Naruto knew he didn't like him that way. He didn't know why he sometimes felt attracted to Sasuke, though.

"I guess... do you think it's possible to be attracted to one person of the same sex without it meaning you're, you know, bisexual?"

"Definitely," said Yahiko. "None of us fit in a box, Naruto. The queer community goes out of the way to label a broad spectrum of orientations, but when it comes down to it, you can't always help who you're drawn to. Some people are straight without ever having sexual or romantic feelings toward the same sex, some of us only like the same sex, some of us like both, some of us have no preference at all, and some people aren't even interested in sex."

"So, how do I know whether I'm one of those people who might only be attracted to just one guy or... maybe I really am attracted to women and men, but I don't know it?"

"I see," said Yahiko. "So that's why you asked me earlier about how I knew?"

"I was curious, but then when I went to get a drink and Sasuke came up to me, I got this feeling. One I keep havin' a lot lately. I dated girls over the summer because, I guess I wanted to, but also I thought it would give Sasuke an opportunity to do his own thing. He doesn't date because he's afraid of his parents finding out. I thought I was gettin' in the way of it, and there's something else."

"First, can I ask you something?" Yahiko turned to him, the smell of his cologne reminding him of Sasuke's. He absently wondered if they wore the same kind.

"Sure."

"You and Sasuke... have you ever talked about this kind of thing?"

"Yeah. Sort of. I've never told him I've had moments where I wondered if I was bi or whatever 'cause I thought he'd freak out on me, or–"

"You'd give him false hope? I'm guessing that if he knew you felt this way, he wouldn't hold back, Naruto."

"I dunno about that. He's pretty adamant about not coming out, and while I'd like him to 'cause I think he'd be happier, it's obviously not my call."

"If he did come out," said Yahiko, "Would you consider a relationship with him?"

Naruto let out a sigh. "That's the thing, isn't it?" He plucked at a piece of grass. "I've always told him that I ... can't be with someone who isn't honest."

"You think him being in the closet makes him dishonest?"

"No. Not exactly. It's more like I wanna be with someone who's okay with being himself. I don't wanna sneak around when I'm with someone like that, you know? I want people to know we're together. I wanna go on dates. I don't wanna hide it."

"And you'd be okay with people knowing you were dating a guy? Even with people thinking you're straight. They might not think that anymore, even if you're only attracted to this one person."

"I'm fine with that. I don't mean to say that so easily, but I've already put up with a bunch of shit the last couple of years, so I'm not afraid. Sasuke, on the other hand–I know he's doing it because he loves his dad, but it sucks."

Yahiko nodded. "And all of this has been on your mind for some time, hm?"

"Yeah."

"That must be tough. To feel like you have no one to talk to. Do you want to know how I think Sasuke feels?"

Naruto glanced at him, feeling his heart begin to race. Their eyes met in the dark, and Yahiko's expression was almost too serious for him to handle.

"Since we're talking in confidence," Yahiko said, "I suppose it's safe to assume, given how close you are to Sasuke, that you know about the two of us."

"Oh. Uh–"

Yahiko smiled. "I figured you did since you didn't seem to be too happy with me at first."

"Er, sorry. I didn't mean–"

Yahiko waved it off. "I get it. I've thought about that night many times since then. I don't want to say it was a mistake because I know what it meant for Sasuke, but it's not something I'm super proud of. I could make excuses for why I let it happen, but it did. Sasuke was a good kid. He used to visit Itachi often, and we'd talked on the phone, emailed, texted, chatted on video a few times just because he was Itachi's cute kid brother. I'll just say that I had a moment of weakness, and I started to think things like, well, he's telling me he wants to lose his virginity to someone he trusts, so maybe it's not such a bad idea because what if he finds someone who's too rough or treats him like shit afterward? There are guys like that... Alcohol was a factor, too. I hope you understand that I did give it some thought. I don't know if it was the right decision, and Itachi... the guilt I feel... it's hard not to tell him, but I worry about fucking up his relationship with Sasuke. So, I just bite my tongue and hope that Sasuke understands. Why I can't return the feelings he had. I think he understood when I began dating Konan, but I knew how he felt. Honestly, if he was older, I would consider it. I'd even put up with Itachi's ire, but it's not going to happen." He gave Naruto a very intense look. "And I love Konan."

Naruto listened to all of this somberly. He felt for Sasuke, and he felt for Yahiko.

"Thanks for tellin' me all this," he said. "I think I get it, and maybe I'm glad 'cause when he talks about it, he always says he never regrets it and that he's glad it was you."

Yahiko smiled, though he looked off, straight ahead, and then lowered his head.

"That's a relief, Naruto," he said. "You have no idea."

They were quiet for a few minutes until Yahiko took in a deep breath and let it out.

"Now that we have that out of the way, let's get back to your dilemma," said Yahiko. "Your relationship with Sasuke, is it physical?"

"Wow, we're gettin' right down to that one, huh?"

"I thought if I shared first, you might feel more inclined to trust me."

"Yeah." He sat forward and started cracking his knuckles. "We haven't... had sex or anything, but we've pretty much done everything else. Not when I'm dating someone, of course, and, actually, last month I kind of told him we couldn't do that anymore."

"May I ask why?"

"We went to a party together, and for a while, I couldn't find him. Turns out he was upstairs fucking some guy."

"While you were there?" Yahiko asked. "That surprises me."

"I think he was mad. You know, 'cause I'd been seein' other people. Maybe frustrated is a better word? He told me so last night on the phone. That he felt lonely and frustrated, so I guess I get it, and we've never said we couldn't see other people. The only thing is, I was shocked and my dumb feelings got hurt. I'd talked to him about the girls I wanted to ask out 'cause I didn't want things to get too weird. But, he just sort of–yeah."

"So you two had a fight and then you decided it was best not to continue a physical relationship?"

"Er." He blushed rather hard. "Not exactly."

"Oh...?"

"We went back to my place, and I..." Naruto cleared his throat. "I kinda lost my head and was ready to go all the way, but Sasuke was smart enough to not let it happen. The next morning, after I'd thought about it, I decided we shouldn't anymore." He looked over at Yahiko. "'Cause things were starting to get confusing... for me."

"Because you love him?"

"Yeah." He bit his lip. "I do. I don't know if it's in the 'let's get married' kind of way. I also, when I'm having sex, I don't want it to be casual. Sasuke... it felt like he was okay with having casual sex, and I can't–I can't treat him casually when we do stuff. I can't not think about what it all means even though–"

This conversation was starting to work him up. He was getting too emotional about it. It already felt like a betrayal to Sasuke to be blabbering about all of this to Yahiko. But, who else could he turn to, and things were beginning to get worse because even with the ground rules he still had thoughts of doing stuff with Sasuke. He missed it, and he knew Sasuke did, too. But how could they keep going on like this without destroying their friendship?

It was so stupid to realize how naive he'd been that first time they hooked up. The week they met, Naruto had been drawn to him, even attracted to him. He knew he got jealous when other guys flirted with Sasuke, but he always assumed that it was because they were friends. Yet. He knew after dating those girls that there was something wrong with him. He'd tried to rationalize why he cared more about Sasuke's feelings than theirs, why everything with Sasuke was more intense and exciting and left him feeling not only fulfilled but wanting more.

"Okay, Naruto. Here's what I think."

Since he didn't think he could talk without his voice cracking like he was going through puberty, he only nodded.

"You love Sasuke. It might be more than friendship, but you aren't sure because it doesn't make sense to you to be attracted to another man when you've always believed that you were straight. Even knowing that it's possible to be with another man and still not be attracted to any other man but him, you're not sure how Sasuke feels because, for the first time, he decided to be with someone else in a casual situation and probably didn't think twice about it other than when it upset you enough to cut off your physical relationship with him. You're afraid because he's not ready to commit to an actual relationship and that your physical relationship doesn't mean as much to him as it does you."

Naruto thought that was mostly all accurate, so he gave a brief nod. "Yeah. Basically."

"But the thing is," he moved closer and put an arm around Naruto's shoulders. "Sasuke loves you, too. I think you know that much, and everyone else makes jokes about it because they know, too."

"He cares about me as a friend, yeah. I know that."

"I don't know if it's my place to say this, but Naruto," Yahiko's fingers squeezed at his shoulder, "Sasuke may very well be in love with you. Except, he knows it's impossible for anything to happen since he's not ready to come out. I don't know exactly why he chose to do that while you were in the house and could've very easily have walked in on them–"

Naruto actually shuddered at the thought. It already sucked knowing that when he'd been standing outside the door, those two were probably going at it. He'd put more thought into realizing that lately than the night it happened. He remembered being too shocked to fully process all of his feelings at the time.

"But I'm guessing he might've done it to test you or even hurt you. Not because he doesn't care about you but because he does."

"He shows he cares by sleeping with someone else?" Naruto asked.

"Weren't you trying to think of his best interests by dating other people?"

"Yeah, but–" He wanted to argue but he really couldn't. His excuse was always that he'd kept Sasuke in the loop with everything so as not to hurt his feelings. Yet, he knew that more than really being head over heels for those girls, it was a lot about this fear he had of the two of them getting used to what they had and then not only would he be unable to date, Sasuke wouldn't be able to either. He couldn't take this.

Naruto covered his face with both hands. "This is so fucking confusing! I don't know what to do anymore."

Yahiko pulled him closer, holding him as he shook under his arm.

"I forgot how tough it can be to be a teenager," Yahiko remarked. "There's nothin' weird about you or your relationship with Sasuke. I know it's hard, but maybe you two need to have a real heart-to-heart about your feelings. If it's a friendly love you share or if it's something more, if either of you want more, if more can actually happen, or what can be done so that you can both move on if it's unrealistic to keep things at the 'just friends' level."

"What if we can't figure it out?" He asked. "What if we just keep hurting each other? What if I lose him as a friend because of all this? I can live with him sleeping with guys and not giving a shit about that kind of thing because that's his choice, but I–" He clenched a fist. "I don't wanna imagine what it would be like to have him shut me out. To have us not be friends, or to live a life where Sasuke's not by my side."

Yahiko rested his head against Naruto's. "What can I do for you? Do you want me to talk to him?"

"Maybe if I knew if what I feel for him is more than friendship... maybe all the sexual stuff has just confused me because I'm so much more emotional than him. What if me getting so attached to him because of that makes me a nuisance to him?"

"You can't really think that," said Yahiko. "I already told you I think the kid is head over heels for you."

"I think he thinks he is, but I–do you know what I really think?"

"What?"

"I think he likes the idea of havin' me in his pocket. Like, I'm almost an excuse for him not to go after other guys or come out to his dad. He can look at me and think, ah, I have Naruto, and we hook up sometimes, so this is fine for me, and now I don't have to make any attempt at dealing with the fact that I'm fuckin' gay!"

Wow, had he really said that aloud? He'd only ever thought about it, and it always hurt him so much. That, while Sasuke thought he might have feelings for him, all Naruto really was to him... was an ideal. How could Sasuke love him like that but fuck with other guys and act like it was no big deal? Even if he regretted it or apologized, this was a thing Sasuke was capable of when he didn't get his way. Did Naruto want to consider being with someone who could do that? It either meant it's not what Sasuke truly wanted or, even if they got together, that Sasuke might hurt him.

He didn't want their friendship to change. He didn't want to lose Sasuke. Things were fine as they were, weren't they? Except... things weren't fine. At all. He felt like he was going crazy trying to figure this all out.

"Do me a favor?" He asked suddenly, looking at Yahiko.

"Sure, Naruto. Anything."

"Would you kiss me?"

Yahiko blinked at him. "Pardon?"

"I want you to kiss me. You're an attractive guy. You're a good person. You've been with men. More than anyone else I've met, if I kiss you and feel somethin', won't that mean maybe I really might be interested in guys?"

"What would that prove?" Yahiko asked.

"That, I dunno, maybe it's not just Sasuke I'm into but other guys. So, then... maybe there wouldn't be all this pressure or confusion all the damn time?"

"I'm not sure this is the best thing to do."

"I wouldn't ask if I wasn't desperate," he insisted.

Yahiko let out a quiet laugh. "Not sure that's the kind of thing to say to get me in the mood."

"Ah, sorry."

He moved back a ways so they weren't so close but were at least looking at one another. Naruto searched Yahiko's face, trying to determine if those same feelings he felt with Sasuke might come up if he at least could think of Yahiko in _that_ way.

"Are you sure about this?" Yahiko asked. "Sasuke might, literally, kill me. Itachi, too."

"Jesus, like I'd tell Sasuke."

Yahiko studied him for some time before letting out a long exhale of breath.

"Alright. One kiss." He scratched the back of his neck. "This is a lot of pressure to put on a guy, you know? I feel like I'm determining your sexuality here."

"You kind of are, aren't you?" Naruto's lips pulled into a smile, and he let out a nervous laugh.

"God, I really do feel bad doin' this to Sasuke. It goes against the bro code, kissing a guy you know your friend likes."

"For the record," Naruto said, "Sasuke and I aren't dating."

"True. And he did screw a random guy while you weren't very far away."

"Right?" He laughed, feeling the nervousness fade. "Guess he had it comin', huh?"

"At least you're not bad to look at." Smirking, Yahiko turned more to him and, leaning in, held a hand to his left cheek.

Out of reflex, his eyes lowered to the other man's lips and then he wet his own. "I'm the one who asked for this. I wonder if I should've made the first move?"

"You did ask for me to kiss you, so that's how it goes."

Naruto chuckled, and that's when Yahiko moved in. He closed his eyes and waited.

Yahiko's lips were surprisingly soft as they pressed to his firmly, and then he tilted Naruto's head and deepened the kiss. He didn't know what he was reaching for, but he found his hand landing on the other man's knee; Yahiko's hand snuck to the back of his neck and pulled him even closer. As kisses go, it was nice, and obviously the man had experience.

Naruto did feel a little something, but as those butterflies in his stomach started to come to life–he began to picture dark hair, dark eyes and that pull he only ever felt when Sasuke was nearby.

After it ended, his lids fluttered open, and he stared at Yahiko.

"Well? Experience any new revelations?" Yahiko asked, his voice more gruff than before.

Naruto grinned. "Kind of."

"Care to share?" Yahiko's hand was still on the back of his neck.

"I think–"

A twig snapped nearby. Naruto looked behind them only to discover Sasuke standing less than 10 feet away.

"Sasuke," he said, and realizing where his hand was, removed it from Yahiko's knee.

"I thought you two had been gone for a while," Sasuke said in a deadly quiet voice.

Naruto felt like his heart was going to burst out of his chest. He scrambled to his feet.

"This isn't what it looks like–"

"Oh? Because it _looks_ like you were kissing Yahiko."

"Yeah, but Sasuke–"

"It's fine," Sasuke said and turned around. "I'll leave you to your privacy. Come back when you're finished. Everyone was beginning to worry."

Naruto watched him walk away and was about to chase after him when Yahiko pulled at his ankle. "Give him some space."

"Huh? How can I? He's gonna get the wrong idea!"

"Do you really think that?"

"Of course I do. He saw me kissing you."

Yahiko got to his feet and brushed his hands over his jeans. "He's surprised, but I doubt he thinks you and I are going to begin some kind of fling. Let him think, and then have your talk later when it's just the two of you. Tell him what you told me. If he can't understand, you might have your answer, after all."

Naruto remained uncertain but didn't see the point in causing a scene by chasing after him.

"Alright," he said, "I guess we should head back."

"Before the rumors really get started," Yahiko replied sarcastically.

"Sorry to drag you into this."

"It'll work out how it's meant to, and in the end, I got to learn you're a pretty good kisser."

Folding his arms behind his head, he smirked. "Only 'pretty' good?"

"If I praise you any more than that, Sasuke really will have it out for me."

"Mah. I'll make sure he knows it was my idea. Thanks, Yahiko. For helping me with all this when we don't even know each other that well."

"We might have only just met, but any friend of Itachi and Sasuke is a friend of mine."

Naruto laughed. "That's pretty, um…"

"Gay?" Yahiko smirked. "Nah. I'm only gay at least half the time. But I'm guessing that's somethin' _you_ won't have to worry about experiencing anymore."


	7. Cheap Thrills IV

He didn't know what he was thinking as he took a seat in the chair next to his brother. Had he really just seen that, or was that one of his nightmares come to life?

"Sasuke?" Itachi leaned over and spoke quietly to him. "Everything alright?"

"Fine. They were talking by the pond. They should be back shortly."

"Ah, is that all it was?" Hidan groaned as he lit up another cigarette. "How boring."

While everyone else continued to talk among themselves, Sasuke stared straight ahead as he settled his arms on the chair rests.

"Are you sure you're alright?" Itachi leaned over again. "Your hand's shaking."

Sasuke managed to look at him for a whole three seconds before he had to glance elsewhere and cover his face.

"I take it they were doing more than talking?" Itachi asked without sounding nearly as calm as before.

"I don't want to talk about it," he replied. "I… have no idea what's up with them, but I'll let Naruto explain it to me later. I can't process it right now, okay?"

Frustratingly, that was when Naruto and Yahiko decided to make their entrance–together. Not only that, but the two of them were smiling, at least until Naruto glanced his way. He started heading in his direction when he was stopped by Deidara grabbing for his arm. Sasuke saw him whisper something in the teen's ear.

"If that were the case," Naruto replied, "You'd be one of the first to know."

As Naruto walked away, Deidara gave him a smack on the ass much to his annoyance. Itachi got up almost immediately and went to pull Yahiko aside. The two of them headed toward the fire. He only hoped his brother wouldn't make a scene. Sasuke couldn't fathom an explanation for what he walked in on or the few bits of their conversation he'd happened to overhear.

When Itachi was gone, Naruto took his seat.

"Sasuke."

He couldn't even look at him. "We can talk about it later."

Naruto dragged his chair closer. "Hey, look at me first, okay?"

Sasuke did, but it hurt. To think about the fact he'd just seen Naruto kissing another guy, and, out of _all_ people, it had to be Yahiko?

"I'll explain later. You're gonna have to trust me."

He gave a half-hearted nod. "Okay."

"'Okay'? Are you just saying that?"

"Let's just act normal until we can talk about it in private. I'm… not mad."

Naruto's brow furrowed. "Really? 'Cause you look like you're about to kill someone."

Sasuke hissed out a sharp sigh, but he was determined not to get angry. "I was caught off guard. If you say there's a reason for it, then it's fine. I trust you. I don't understand, but I trust you."

Naruto stared at him before breaking into the smallest of smiles. However, it didn't last very long because then he fell into quiet contemplation. It was clear something was on his mind, but it didn't appear to be because he felt guilty for being caught. In a way, Sasuke found that reassuring. He knew Naruto wouldn't lie if he could help it, or even if he did, Sasuke would be able to tell.

"At least tell me you didn't use any tongue," he said dryly.

Naruto's eyes widened. "You can make jokes about it?"

"I think I have to, or I might end up wanting to strangle the both of you."

"Like I said," Naruto insisted, "There's an explanation."

Sasuke frowned. "I hope it doesn't involve a sudden romantic interest in him. if you're going to fall for a guy, try not to let it be the one I lost my virginity to."

Naruto shook his head. "It wasn't like that. And, you need to know I asked him to do it as a favor. How long had you been standing there anyway?"

"I walked up right before he kissed you. I wasn't going to check on you, but it had been 20 minutes. It was me or Hidan, so now I'm glad I volunteered to be the one to go."

"Ah," was all Naruto said, but he looked relieved.

Sasuke eyed him carefully, unable to determine what was going through Naruto's mind. He was anxious to know the reasonings behind what happened. What did the two of them talk about? What led up to the kiss, and why had Naruto asked Yahiko to do it? It scared him how little he felt like he understood Naruto right now.

"I still can't believe you'd make out with another guy while wearing my sweatshirt," Sasuke said, feeling like he might fall apart if he didn't crack jokes to relieve the tension.

Plus, he wanted to show he could be cool about this. He didn't want to jump down Naruto's throat or start making accusations just because he was a little jealous.

"Sorry. You weren't supposed to see that." Naruto was biting his lip again. "You're bein' surprisingly calm about all this. It's making me really nervous."

"I can be calm."

He didn't look like he believed him.

"What? I can."

"Sasuke," Naruto looked him in the eye, "I–"

"There are the two lovebirds," said Hidan as he strolled up to them, holding a beer. "Or wait, is it true you're havin' an affair with Yahiko now?"

"Jesus, Hidan. Would you shut up?" Sasuke glowered at him.

"Tch. Don't sass me just 'cause your boyfriend ran off with someone else. Here, take this. You look like you could use it." He handed Sasuke a beer.

He took it, but only because he thought it would make Hidan go away. Naruto didn't say anything, and eventually Hidan made his way back over to Jirōbō and Deidara.

"Do you want this?" Sasuke offered him the beer.

"Sure." Naruto took it, but when their fingers overlapping, he jerked away. "Sorry. I guess I'm kinda jumpy."

"It's… fine." He wasn't sure how to process Naruto's reaction to his touch. "You can stop apologizing. After you finish that, would you like to go inside?"

"No, it's alright." Naruto shook his head. "I know you don't get to hang out with everybody very often."

"I think I've already done enough hanging out for one weekend."

Naruto nodded. "I'll go in when you're ready."

"Before Hidan came over… were you going to tell me something?"

"Yeah. I was. But," Naruto sipped at his beer and mumbled, "I guess it can wait until later."

* * *

Naruto couldn't shake all of this nervous energy. He felt bad that Sasuke had to witness the kiss, but that's why he'd wanted privacy, dammit. Not that kissing Yahiko had been part of the plan. Why did everyone always have to be up in each other's business around here? Even though he'd resolved that whole freak-out of possibly being bisexual, it didn't make the next step any clearer for him. If he was completely honest - if he told everything to Sasuke just the way he'd told Yahiko - would it make a difference? Would it change anything?

Eventually, the others gathered around them except Yahiko and Itachi, who were off by the fire talking. He hoped Itachi wasn't giving Yahiko a hard time. Simply because they were so similar, he knew Yahiko wouldn't open his mouth about anything unnecessary. He doubted Itachi would think that either one of them would want to hurt Sasuke.

While he did sympathize with Sasuke (after all, he knew what it felt like to be shocked like that) and despite what everyone else thought, they were _not_ a couple. Although, that's probably not even what Sasuke was thinking. If Naruto could've gone to anyone else, he would've, but Yahiko was the only option given the circumstances. If Sasuke genuinely thought that he'd go gay for a guy he just met, well, then Sasuke didn't know him at all.

It did unnerve him, however, about how surprisingly cool Sasuke was being. It was obvious his feelings were hurt but once Naruto could explain everything, he thought it would end up making sense to him. Really, he just wanted to be sure of his feelings before he did anything that could potentially fuck up their friendship. The kiss wouldn't have been a thing at all if Sasuke wouldn't have seen it.

Sasuke turned in the chair to look at him.

"What is it?" He noticed Naruto watching him.

He searched Sasuke's face, wanting very much to ease his worries but knowing they needed to have privacy first. "I feel like I should check on your brother and Yahiko."

"Let them talk it out. If nothing happened, Yahiko can explain it, and Itachi won't misunderstand."

"It _wasn't_ my intention to 'cause any drama, especially for Yahiko."

"I guess it's my fault for going over there in the first place. I should've realized a month ago that this is one of the reasons you wanted some space."

He sighed, scrubbing his face with both hands before getting to his feet. "Take a walk with me."

"Will I be offered something similar if I let you take me somewhere private, too? I thought we weren't doing that anymore?"

"If you don't want to, that's fine. I was just gonna go grab a water out of the cooler."

He decided to give Sasuke some space, but only managed to take three steps before he felt a pull on his sweatshirt. With Sasuke walking by his side, he stopped to pick out a water for himself (and a water for Sasuke since he asked). Then they headed over by the shed where the only light came from the quarter moon hanging in the sky.

"I just want to know," Sasuke spoke in a voice barely above a whisper, "Why him?"

"Because he was the only one I could go to," he answered while uncapping the bottle.

"That doesn't make it sound any better."

"But isn't that how you felt the night you and Yahiko did it?" Naruto asked.

Unfortunately, the bottle slipped from his grasp when Sasuke grabbed for his arm and pushed him against the shed.

"What is going _on_ with you?" He growled at Naruto.

"You probably don't wanna hear this, but this is the clearest my head has been in months. I didn't even mean that remark about Yahiko in a bad way. Just that I get what you see in him."

"Who _are_ you?"

"Still me," he said. "Still your friend. If I thought we could go without bein' interrupted for five minutes, I'd tell you everything."

"We're alone now, aren't we - "

"Naruto."

He would've laughed at the irony if it wasn't for the terrifying look on Itachi's face as he unexpectedly came around the shed and spotted the two of them.

"Is this a bad time?" He asked.

Sasuke didn't take his eyes off of Naruto. "What do you want, Itachi?

"I'd like to have a chat with Naruto if you think you can get yourself to let go of him," Itachi replied.

Naruto saw the way Sasuke flinched at Itachi's phrasing. He felt an incredible ache in his chest. Again, everybody always felt the need to get involved with what was going on between them.

Itachi set a hand on his brother's shoulder. "Yahiko wants to talk you. I'll tell him where you are."

Sasuke's hold on him loosened. "Alright."

"I'll talk to you later," Naruto murmured.

He returned to the fire, Itachi walking silently next to him. Yahiko was there; he looked up at Naruto as they approached.

"I've filled Itachi in on some things, more or less," Yahiko replied. "But only enough that he realized our intentions weren't to hurt Sasuke."

"While I think there could've been another way of going about this," Itachi said while taking a seat on a different bench than either Naruto or Yahiko, "I trust the two of you. I knew Yahiko understood how my brother felt about you, Naruto, and I understand you and Sasuke are not together romantically. Still. He's my little brother, and I won't have anyone hurting him. Even by accident."

"I'd kinda like to talk to Sasuke about all this first. But, Itachi. It was my idea to go to Yahiko. He was the only one I could go to for the kind of advice I needed. Yahiko helped me figure out stuff that had been bothering me, and now I know Sasuke and I need to have a serious talk. Before I could talk to him, though, I had had to go to the only person I know who understands what it's like," his gaze shifted to Yahiko, "To find yourself attracted to girls… and, uh, guys."

Itachi looked surprised. "...Pardon."

"Pardon what?" He asked.

"I didn't tell him anything," said Yahiko. "Other than there was a reason Sasuke found you and I … in a compromising position."

"You didn't tell him? Ah, crap, well. There you go. Thought I was bi for a second, but it turns out I'm not." Naruto scratched the back of his head. "Er. No offense," he said to Yahiko.

Yahiko held up a hand. "None taken."

"...Are you saying you have feelings for my brother?" Itachi asked.

Naruto let out a sigh while watching the fire. "Like I said, I have to talk to Sasuke first. I'm tired of everyone else tryin' to interfere. We coulda had a nice conversation later if he wouldn't have felt pressure to come check on us. It was just a test to see if I might be attracted to other guys, or whatever."

"Hold on." Itachi looked positively gleeful. "You're _attracted_ to Sasuke?" He held a hand over his heart. "I have to say, this may be too much for me. After watching the two of you dance around each other for so long and wondering when one or the both of you would finally own up to it… I feel so proud of you, Naruto. If it were up to Sasuke, he would've taken his feelings to the grave, I'm sure."

"Hey, don't jump the gun here," Naruto said. "I just wanted to be sure about some things. That doesn't mean he and I are gonna date or get married or anything. But, if I'm gonna have a serious talk with him about stuff, I'd like to be sure that I know what the heck is going on."

"You're not telling me you've violated my brother already, are you?" Itachi asked.

Naruto rolled his eyes. "I'm not talkin' to you about that."

"I've never felt this way," Itachi said to Yahiko.

Both of them were smiling so widely it was giving him the creeps.

"It is a very satisfying feeling," Yahiko replied, "That Sasuke might get to know what it feels like to meet his romantic match."

"You two sound like a couple of old men right now, sheesh." Naruto stared into the fire. "It's only a talk. It's not like that. I only wanna tell him the same things I told Yahiko. So I can explain to him that we weren't makin' out just 'cause I wanted to bone the guy behind his back."

"That's some interesting phrasing, Naruto." Yahiko smiled.

"Pervert." Naruto grinned at him. "I thought you were gonna go have a talk with Sasuke."

"Tryin' to get rid of me despite what we shared earlier?"

He laughed. Ah, Yahiko really was so likable. He kind of almost thought if he'd had an older brother, he'd be a lot like Yahiko. Wait. Did that mean he really would make out with his sibling?

"Shit, I really am like Luke Skywalker," Naruto muttered. "How did that bastard know?"

"I don't think I want to know where that train of thought came from," said Itachi, "But Yahiko, if you would go talk to him. I caught him strangling Naruto by the shed, so I imagine he's still there."

"Hey, I had a handle on things." Naruto stuck out his bottom lip. "I guess I deserve it. For hurting his feelings." _And making him feel like he was betrayed by his best friend and past (current?) gay crush_.

Itachi appeared thoughtful. "He of all people would know what it's like to be uncertain in that area. I did grow up with him in the same house, after all, and made the mistake of looking at his browser history one day. So, I suppose I'm all for you exploring your sexuality, too, so long as it doesn't involve making out with any more of my friends. At least… not in front of Sasuke, please."

"Jeez, it was one kiss," Naruto told him.

"It was a very good kiss, though." Yahiko walked up behind him and put a hand on his shoulder.

Naruto blushed. "Um. Yeah. Don't tell Sasuke that, maybe?"

"Don't worry. I only want to apologize to him for the misunderstanding, but I'll leave the details to you." Yahiko gave them both a wave. "I'll see you in a little bit."

"Sure." Naruto watched him go, wondering what would happen when those two talked.

He knew Sasuke had feelings for Yahiko, but he didn't know how deep they went. It was one more thing that needed to be sorted out before any progress could be made.

"So," said Itachi, "Do you want to have a little talk with me about the birds and the bees? All joking aside, even though I understand this is between the two of you, I'd like to have some clarification on what's really been happening between the two of you all of this time."

Naruto paled. "You want... details?"

Itachi sighed while leaning against the back of the bench. His hair was down and falling over his shoulders. Naruto couldn't argue that he was one of the most attractive guys he'd ever known in real life. But, at least he knew now that physical looks had no impact on him. It was only Sasuke he felt an attraction to in the same way he experienced with women. Thinking about it, though, he did have to wonder if Yahiko had ever felt attracted to Itachi? Damn. He should've asked when he had the opportunity.

"Of course I don't want details," Itachi replied in a gruff voice. "I just want to know your intentions."

"My intentions?" He asked. "My intentions are to... I guess I want him to know what it could feel like to be in a real relationship with someone who cares about him and appreciates who he is."

"You make it sound as if that person's not you."

"I'm not so full of myself that I think I could be that person to him. We may just be friends who've become codependent, but, at least, I'd like him to get a taste of what he's missing out on. Do you know what I mean?"

"Sasuke will come out in his own time."

"I know. But, I don't think he knows what it could be like for him. He has no idea that someone like him deserves - " Naruto closed his eyes. "I can't believe I'm talkin' to you about this."

"Besides Yahiko, I also happen to know Sasuke quite well."

"I know. Sorry. But, this is really between me and Sasuke."

"I'll leave it to you then, but just know that if you hurt my brother - I'll bury you with all of the others who've tried to defile him. Also," Itachi graced him with one of those quirky smiles, "I do care about you, Naruto. It's just that I happen to love Sasuke a little more, so if I have to remind you how much he means to me, I won't hesitate even if we're friends."

"Why do I feel like you're seriously threatening me right now?" He scooted away a few inches. "I'm tryin' to say I have his best interests at heart!"

"Yes, but you didn't see him when he came back after seeing you and Yahiko doing - whatever you were doing in front of him."

"I know, but obviously it didn't mean anything. If he knew me at all - "

"Sasuke does know you." Itachi crossed his arms against his chest. "He said over and over that he trusted you today even though he kept getting paranoid, and I mistakenly told him that everything was going to be okay. I know he cares about you very much. I also know that you've been trying to date other people. I'm not saying the two of you should get together. I'm not even saying my brother is capable of that right now, but if something should happen, it would be good to know that at least one of you is thinking with a clear head."

Naruto nodded. "I feel like I was able to get a lot of stuff off my chest thanks to Yahiko. Now I can talk to Sasuke with more confidence... maybe."

"Maybe?"

"I am... kinda nervous." He chuckled while rubbing the sweat from his palms across his jeans.

"Will it be a confession of sorts?"

"Er... like I said, I only want him to understand that there's more out there for him than he realizes."

"Alright. I suppose you have my approval. I expect you to name your first child together after me, of course."

Naruto gave a quick glance at him to see if he was kidding. He couldn't be sure given that Itachi had the best poker face in the world.

"Heh... yeah. I think given that we're both 17, kids might not really be somethin' that's gonna come up tonight."

"I merely wanted you to keep it in the back of your mind as an option."

"Do you... really think that, you know, if Sasuke and I were to - " He started biting his lip. "Does he even feel that way about me?"

Itachi put an arm around him. "What is it that Sasuke always calls you? That pet name of his?"

"I don't know about a pet name, but he always calls me an idiot."

"Yes. I think I see now why he calls you that."

* * *

Sasuke was leaning against the shed and staring up at the stars. For the first time in his life, he considered asking Hidan for a cigarette. Why did it feel like he was alone in all of this? Usually it felt as though he and Naruto were always on the same page, but now he wasn't sure. Things were happening behind his back, and he didn't like it. He also didn't like the idea of Naruto hiding things from him, and, before last night, he would've said Naruto had _never_ hidden anything. Except, now he knew there was a point during the summer when Sai confessed to him. He meant what he'd said when telling Naruto that was a private moment between the two of them that he didn't need to know about. But, at the same time, it was an example of Naruto not being entirely honest with him.

Left alone, he tried to come up with his own reasons for what he saw. Even if neither of them were interested in each other, why would Naruto go to Yahiko for help? Was it revenge for a month ago? That seemed unlikely as it was clear it was a scene Naruto didn't want him to see. He heard the sound of someone approaching and wondered if Naruto had managed to escape from Itachi's clutches already. But it wasn't Naruto, after all.

"Itachi said you were back here."

Yahiko came to stand in front of him. He gazed at the sky, too.

"It's nice to see so many stars out, hm?" The older man asked.

Sasuke watched his face as he surveyed the sky. It was hard not to think about the time they were together with Yahiko so close like this, but when he thought of him kissing Naruto, he started to feel betrayed again.

"Don't tell me you're here to apologize?" Sasuke asked.

"I am actually. I wonder why I keep letting you teenagers ask me for help when it always comes back to bite me in the ass." Yahiko was smiling, so he knew he was at least half-joking.

"I hope you weren't intending to provide Naruto with the same kind of help that I asked you for?"

"No," Yahiko replied before sighing. He slid up next to Sasuke, leaning against the shed, too. "Care if I smoke?"

"I thought you quit."

"I picked it up again after Konan and I split." He pulled out a cigarette and lighter. When the lighter wouldn't immediately ignite, Sasuke took it from him and got it to work with the first flick of his thumb.

"How's Naruto doing?"

"He and your brother were having a heart to heart."

"Is it true... that Naruto came to you for advice?"

Their arms and shoulders touched. Normally being this close to Yahiko would've made him feel anxious, but, at the moment, all he really wanted were answers.

"He did, but he wants to be the one to tell you. I did want to apologize, if seeing us..." He gazed at Sasuke, and his regret seemed sincere, "Hurt your feelings. Even if you came up in conversation, what happened between Naruto and me, was about Naruto and something he's going through."

"Something he's going through?" Sasuke repeated. "I don't understand how something he's supposedly going through has to do with him asking you for a kiss."

"I know, but you will." He smiled warmly. "When you two get a chance to talk. He really cares about you, Sasuke. That I can say for sure. It almost makes me jealous."

"Jealous?" Sasuke scoffed. "How so?"

"Hmm. I don't remember you ever talking to me this way before," Yahiko mused. "Now I feel like you really do think I was trying to steal him away from you."

"I wouldn't think that. The two of you hardly know one another. Besides, you just said it wasn't like that."

"I'll throw out a hypothetical then. Let's say that today, after spending time with Naruto, I did think he was a pretty cute kid. How old is he... 17, right?"

Sasuke, knowing where this is headed, started to lose some of his cool. "What's your point?"

"You two aren't dating. I'm single. Would it bother you if I took an interest in him?"

"You mean, would I be bothered that the man I lost my virginity to in secret suddenly started hitting on my best friend? Why the hell would something like that bother me?" He turned to face Yahiko and snatched the cigarette from his fingers. "If you have something you want to ask, don't try to be cute with these hypotheticals."

Yahiko's eyes widened. "You really are growing up. Then. Do you like Naruto? As more than a friend?"

He looked away. "How is that any of your business? How is that anyone's business?"

"If you really did have feelings for him, I hope you won't run away from an opportunity to see if the feeling's mutual. I know what the situation is with your parents, but I don't want you to have regrets later on."

Sasuke searched him, suspicious of his words. "What exactly did Naruto tell you?"

"It has little to do with what Naruto told me and has everything to do with what I can observe from watching the two of you. The way you look at each other. The way you talk to one another. You may think the only one hurting is you, but what if in thinking that, you fuck up something really special? Something you only encounter once in a lifetime?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," he said, and, without realizing it, brought the cigarette to his lips. "Besides. Should you be doling out romantic advice when you just broke up with your longtime girlfriend?"

"Wow. That's harsh." Yahiko rubbed at the back of his head.

"I can't chase after you forever," he admitted bitterly. "I'm not a little kid anymore."

"I know you're not. You were always mature for your age."

"If I'm so mature, why does everyone keep insisting on butting in when it's none of their business?"

"Because they _care_ about you."

"If that's what it means to care then maybe I'm the one who's heartless. Do you know what I did to him last month? We went to a party. One I didn't even want to go to, and this was maybe only a month after he'd broken up with his second girlfriend. He kept flirting with girls at the party, and then he disappeared on me. So, I..." He passed the cigarette over to Yahiko and crossed his arms when the wind picked up, "Got approached by a guy. The DJ of all people." He smirked. "And I let him take me into a room, even knowing Naruto was downstairs somewhere. Even knowing when I kept receiving text messages - that it was him."

"If that's true," Yahiko said quietly, "Doesn't it mean that you do care about him? That you were hurt because he chose to date other people... when maybe you wanted him for yourself?"

"I wouldn't even know what to do with him if I did have him to myself," Sasuke muttered.

"So, you decided to sabotage any chances you might have with him?"

Sasuke gave the man a sharp look. "Who said I might have a chance? Who said he even knows how I feel?"

"Maybe if you told him how you feel then there wouldn't be misunderstandings."

"Tch." He shook his head. "You make it sound so easy. Naruto could have anyone, and he's told me enough times that he's straight."

"I think we both know that being straight doesn't mean there's no room in his heart for you."

"You sound just like him." He was getting irritated. "Always so optimistic, but I guess I need to provide the reality check. He's leaving after high school to move back to Illinois. He likes women. He likes having sex with them. He likes dating, and I'm just..." Sasuke lowered his head. "I'm just this coward who's too afraid to come out of the closet because my dad might hate me. If I can't do that much for Naruto, why would I deserve his feelings even if he could come to think of me that way? There's no point, and... I can live with how things are between us right now."

"What if you knew you weren't the only one suffering?" Yahiko asked.

The thought actually surprised him.

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"Ah, so you don't know everything."

"What - " He wanted to retort but suddenly Yahiko wrapped his arms around him in a hug.

Sasuke was ready to push him away, but when the arms tightened, it felt like his heart was starting to break. A door closing while another opened. He slipped his arms about the man's waist, allowing Yahiko to press him up against the shed. He was shaking for some reason. Things had gotten so complicated without him realizing it. He remembered when he was barely 14, and it was the first time he met Yahiko. He'd had a crush on him from the very beginning. Though he probably looked foolish in this man's eyes at the time, it still meant a lot to Sasuke - that Yahiko was the first man he had feelings for, and that he also happened to be his first sexual experience.

But that time had past. He wasn't that little kid anymore. Yahiko was out of reach, and Sasuke -

After seeing those two kissing, he knew his feelings had changed. It wasn't Naruto he'd been jealous of in that moment. Yahiko let him go long enough to plant a kiss on his forehead.

"I'm sure Naruto's wondering where you are."

"Who knows," Sasuke replied, "He may enjoy having his alone time with Itachi."

Yahiko chuckled. "I'm sorry to laugh, but this is incredibly adorable. Even Sasuke Uchiha experiences teenage angst."

"Tch." He pushed the older man away. "Don't group me with everyone else."

"I never have. I'm happy for you. That you have something you want to protect."

"...That sounds like something Naruto would say."

"All the more reason to think that kiss was far from romantic. We're similar in a lot of ways, he and I. Naruto feels like he could pass for a little brother of mine. Albeit, a very _attractive_ younger brother."

Sasuke let out a laugh.

"There you go. Glad to hear you laugh." Yahiko smiled at him and, with a very soft expression, touched Sasuke's left cheek with his fingers. "If things don't work out with Naruto, and if things don't work out with Konan... feel free to call me in about 10 years."

"Hn. You'll get back with her in a matter of days. You never were very good at staying single."

" _Huh_? Are you callin' me co-dependent? I'm your elder, show some respect." He flicked Sasuke in the forehead.

"Ow." Sasuke rubbed at the spot. "You've been hanging out with Itachi too much."

"Itachi's my best friend. What do you expect? Hopefully he won't hold tonight against me, and... if he ever finds out about you and me - "

"He won't," Sasuke promised. "About that..."

"Hm?"

"I have no regrets, so..."

Yahiko, searching his face briefly, leaned in and kissed him chastely on the lips. It happened too fast for him to react much, and, by then, Yahiko had already pulled away and was staring up at the sky again.

"Is that... a goodbye kiss?" Sasuke asked.

"You could also consider it a kiss of gratitude."

"Konan... really is lucky."

Yahiko smiled softly at him. "So is Naruto."

Sasuke handed him back his cigarette. "You really think I have a chance with him, don't you?"

"That's why I said don't fuck things up."

* * *

Naruto was sitting alone by the fire. Itachi insisted he join him and the other guys, but he didn't think he'd make for good company. He was anxious to talk to Sasuke. Yahiko had been gone for a while. He tried not to be jealous, but it _was_ difficult keeping his imagination from running wild. After all, Sasuke had walked in on the two of them kissing, so maybe he'd feel the need for revenge? Or, maybe seeing Yahiko like that reignited Sasuke's feelings for him? Actually, Naruto wasn't even confident Sasuke was over those feelings. Wasn't it just last night that he'd admitted to still finding him attractive? What were his exact words? That being around Yahiko made him feel like a "schoolgirl".

What could Naruto really offer him anyway? Yahiko would understand everything Sasuke experienced as a gay teen. Naruto would never know that kind of discrimination. Yahiko also had experience dating other men and, obviously, he had more sexual experience. He wasn't sure what his experience with girls could bring to the table.

This was new and weird to be thinking about his best friend that way. To think about Sasuke in the same way he did about picking up a girl. The prospect of being rejected made him nervous, but it was something he had to do, and if he really did have feelings for Sasuke, then he should tell him. That's the sort of relationship they had. Even... even _if_ Sasuke rejected him, they could still be friends, right? Sai had confessed, Naruto rejected him, and they were as close as ever.

But Sai and Sasuke were very different.

Argh! Now he was starting to get even more nervous about why Sasuke and Yahiko had been gone so long. There was a stick by his foot; he reached down, picked it up, and tossed it into the fire. It was, literally, seconds later that Sasuke appeared on the other side of the fire. He gave Naruto an intense look before walking wordlessly to him. Sasuke sat right next to him on the bench, without hardly any room between them. Having Sasuke this close - their sides and shoulders touching - was causing his heart to pound.

What was this? He didn't usually act so awkward when they were alone together.

"You're close," he said.

"If you don't like it, you can move."

Obviously Naruto didn't move.

"I'm ready to go in if you are," Sasuke told him.

"Don't you wanna spend more time with everybody? And you don't get to see Yahiko very often - "

"Naruto."

"Y-yeah?"

Sasuke, turning his head, gave him an unreadable look. "Do you really want me to spend more time with him?"

"Er..."

"If you don't want me to. Just say so."

He started biting his lip. "I don't have that right."

"Okay, then I'll go find him, and see if he can offer me tips on kissing, too - "

Naruto was up almost instantly as Sasuke started to walk away. He grabbed him by the wrist and pulled him down on the bench.

"What did he say to you?" Naruto asked.

Sasuke smirked. "That's private."

"Hmm."

"You're not jealous, are you? Afraid that we got up to the same thing the two of you did by the koi pond? Isn't that supposed to be our spot? It's where I told you that the sun made your eyes look especially blue."

He cracked a grin. "You ate more of Itachi's roofied pizza, didn't you?"

"You didn't answer." Sasuke's smirk disappeared.

"Hm?"

"About whether you were jealous. I'll admit I was jealous today. Of how well the two of you were getting along, and then seeing you - "

"- It didn't mean anything. I told you."

"I know. Because I trust you. That didn't stop me from feeling jealous about the idea of you having feelings for a guy."

"You're being... surprisingly honest," he said and pressed the back of his hand to Sasuke's forehead. "Are you feeling ok?"

Pushing Naruto's hand away, Sasuke got to his feet. "I'm ready for a shower. It's been a long day. I'll go on ahead of you if you want to tell everyone goodbye."

"Don't you want to say goodnight?"

"I already did. I only came over here to get you. I'll see you inside."

Naruto watched him go. He felt excited, like maybe all of this would end up working out okay, after all.

It didn't take long to say goodnight to everybody, and he even got one last hug out of Yahiko. Afterward, he virtually sprinted to the house, nervous but full of determination.

* * *

Sasuke was already in the shower before he saw Naruto again. Even while pretending to be under control just then, he felt ridiculously nervous. Why was Yahiko trying to push him into admitting what he'd held inside this entire time? It was annoying to know he was a person always confident in what he did, but when it came to Naruto - well, he'd always felt afraid. Mostly of fucking up their friendship more than he already had lately.

It made him curious, though, about what led Yahiko to believe Naruto could possibly return his feelings. None of it added up. A month ago, Naruto decided they didn't need to be physical anymore and tonight, he'd caught Naruto kissing another guy.

He shook his head as he ran his fingers through his hair, facing the spray of the water head on as it cascaded down his body. As the steam began to rise, he started to think about the last 8 or 9 months that they'd known one another. Of course he thought about the sexual things, but he also knew that something was wrong with him if the mere thought of Naruto caused him to smile, caused his heart to go into cardiac arrest, and triggered this intense longing for a future where he and Naruto could become more than friends. He didn't want to see him with other people ever again, and he wanted for Naruto to feel the same.

Ever since Naruto had come into life, his emotional state was all over the place. It affected the way he played music, the way he kept an eye on Naruto when he interacted with others, and even the way he dressed or acted sometimes. Like he was showing off for Naruto. Why did he keep doing those things when Naruto had made it clear that he wanted to date girls and not fuck around with him anymore?

Why was everyone giving him all this false hope when he knew he was only being set up to fail? Knowing Naruto was in the bedroom waiting, Sasuke turned off the water and stepped out of the shower. He wrapped a towel around his waist and while brushing his teeth, tried to clear some of the steam from off the mirror. Did he have a plan? Was he prepared for Naruto's explanation about the kiss? All night he'd been saying that he trusted Naruto. Even if there were a lot of things in life that he wasn't sure of, Naruto being honest with him was one of those things he'd never doubted.

It was a bit sentimental, but Naruto was a constant for him in so many ways, so, after always giving his trust blindly to him, Sasuke wanted to be able to return the favor.

* * *

Sasuke had been in the shower for longer than usual. Typically, his showers lasted 10 minutes, so Naruto started to wonder if he'd either passed out or was avoiding him. He'd slipped off Sasuke's sweatshirt and lay it over the chair since it reeked of smoke. In order to calm himself and gather his thoughts, he started using this method his baseball coach had taught the team when they were feeling under pressure. It was some weird yoga technique that involved controlling his breathing and using a calming image in those moments that made him most tense, like if he was pitching and had a runner on third.

He crossed his legs underneath him and closed his eyes, hands resting on his knees. As he took in another deep breath and let it out through his nose, he heard the bedroom door open.

"What are you doing?"

Naruto smiled. "Meditating. Isn't it obvious?"

"I didn't know that was something you were into, or is that a trick you learned from lamaze class?"

Chuckling, Naruto opened his eyes to find a nearly naked Sasuke standing at the foot of the bed. He forgot what was so funny for a second.

"Considering I haven't been with anyone other than you in a month," he replied, "I'd have to wonder if you're the father."

"Don't make such sick jokes," Sasuke muttered, crossing his arms.

"No need to be rude. I'm sure I'll make beautiful babies one day."

"...I'm sure you will, too."

He met Sasuke's eyes and leaned forward, placing his elbows on his knees.

"Shower's free. If you want it."

"I'd kinda rather... talk first." Naruto scratched the back of his neck. "If you don't mind."

"Sure." Sasuke's expression hardened, or at least became tense. "Just let me change."

He ended up watching him as he went to his dresser and pulled out a pair of sweatpants. Sasuke had his hands on the front of his towel when he glanced at Naruto, an eyebrow raised.

"You're leering," he said.

"Ah, sorry. I'll, um, play on my phone then." Naruto went to reach for it off the side table, checking out his Twitter feed.

"It's not like I care," said Sasuke. "I was only teasing."

Even so. Naruto made sure to keep his eyes focused on the screen instead of Sasuke's nakedness. When he finished dressing, Sasuke sat on the corner of the bed.

Naruto, who was leaning against the headboard, put his phone away, and, taking in a deep breath, looked at Sasuke with determination.

"Where should we start?"

"The kiss might be a good starting point. I believe you when you say it wasn't romantic and didn't mean anything. So, why?"

"Okay, can I at least preface this conversation by saying that... this is going to take a little while to explain?"

"...Okay." Sasuke ran a hand through his damp hair, adopting the same position as Naruto, legs crossed and elbows on his knees.

God, this sucked. Even looking at him, Naruto wanted to push him down on the bed and kiss him. Not just tell him all this shit, but make him feel it, make him understand.

But, what if Sasuke didn't want that?

"Just don't be surprised with what I'm gonna say, and hear me out."

"That only makes me more nervous."

"This kinda goes back to that night a month ago. I'm sure it goes back before that, but ever since then, stuff's been weird between us. At least for me. I dunno about you."

"Are you saying," said Sasuke. "That you still haven't forgiven me for what I did?"

"Forgive you...?" Naruto shook his head. "Wait, do you think that I said we should stop doin' that because I'm punishing you?"

"That's not it?"

"No." He steepled and folded his fingers, resting his chin on them. "You've really thought that all this time?"

Sasuke frowned. "What else could it be? I know I hurt your feelings. I know you felt like I manipulated you that night, and if I'd let things go further, I could've fucked up our friendship for good."

"Yeah, but you _didn't_ let that happen, and anyway, it wasn't to punish you because I was pissed or jealous. It was because - "

He stopped, knowing he was about to blurt everything.

"So, you're saying you were jealous?" Sasuke asked and, getting to his knees, moved closer so that they were face to face.

He could smell Sasuke's soap and shampoo. Ah, this was bad. He couldn't think as clearly with Sasuke inches away.

"Naruto?"

"I won't say that I didn't feel jealous. Mostly, it just hurt. To... well, I guess what it felt like was... you know, you wanted to have casual sex because you're not interested in dating right now, and so it made me think... all we do together, that stuff's just casual to you, too. Like I'm practice or whatever."

Sasuke looked like he had something to say, but Naruto held his hand up.

"I know that in the beginning I talked big and even wanted to offer that to you. I wanted you to not miss out on that stuff solely because you were afraid of what would happen with your dad. I thought if it wasn't serious, it would be okay. And I know I was okay with it at the time because it's what I wanted to do, but things have changed, and - "

He bit his lip, unable to completely gauge what Sasuke was thinking by his expression.

"I… can't treat sex with you as casually as you can…. with me... or with other guys."

The color drained from Sasuke's face.

"You think I treat you casually?" Sasuke asked in a low tone of voice.

"I mean. I'm not saying you've done anything wrong. It's just me. I can't... I... it's probably better if you go for guys who won't get attached. So, if one-night stands or casual flings are what you want, then - "

"Naruto, are you fucking kidding me right now?"

"Huh? What do you mean?"

Sasuke got off of the bed and started pacing. "You don't know me at all then. If you've thought this the entire time, you're - "

"What do you mean I don't know you?" He asked, equally frustrated. "What am I supposed to think when you can fuck someone under my nose and then work me up so much afterward that I'm willing to let you fuck me? Do you know how desperate I felt about the thought of losing you or coming to find out I didn't mean as much to you as you did me? I'm not judging you, Sasuke. I'm cool if you do whatever, but I just can't do it anymore if all you're looking for is a good time. I was only an option when there wasn't anyone else, but apparently you're ready to - "

"Shut. The fuck. Up, Uzumaki." Sasuke walked over to him, looking furious. "How can you be this stupid? You, out of all people in this world, are supposed to understand me, and all this time, you thought that I would use you like that? Were you using me, too, then? Obviously you're just fine doing shit with me in between your girlfriends!"

He had a hard time keeping his voice down. "I only dated them because I thought it might make you feel like you could see other people, too!"

"So, you used those girls then? Because that didn't stop you from sleeping with them."

"I didn't use them, asshole. If anything, they wanted to. What do you want me to say? I'm sorry if I'm attracted to women."

Sasuke snorted. "Right. You're attracted to women but then I catch you making out with Yahiko. Something you've yet to explain and, instead, decided to accuse me of using you for sex. Please. Don't flatter yourself. If all I wanted was sex, don't you think I could have as much as I wanted? Do you know how many men hit on me when I play in clubs? Hell, I could have any one of Itachi's friends."

"Oh, well that's great. I'm sorry I've stopped you from fucking the whole city's homosexual population. And here I thought it was because you were too fucking afraid of your father finding out his youngest son is gay."

Sasuke reached for the collar of his shirt and yanked him off the bed until they were standing face to face. "You are such a fucking selfish hypocrite, Naruto."

Naruto held a hand on top of his. " _I'm_ the hypocrite? _I'm_ selfish? So you _do_ care about me? Care so much that you go fuck some stranger to get back at me for dating other people? I'm sorry. Exactly when did I miss the part where you decided to open up to the idea of a relationship? Oh. Never? Because it doesn't make a whole lot of sense for you to be mad at me for dating when you've told me over and over that you're not going to date until college, and that's assuming you ever come out in the first place!"

Sasuke's face was twisted in anger. "And I suppose it makes sense that even though you claim to be _straight,_ you, for some obtuse reason, give a fuck about whether I treat you casually or whether you're the only one I do things with? Did you think you could get away with dating girls when you feel like, and then having me on the side when you're in the mood? When there aren't any giggling cheerleaders around to suck you off? You talk like you only want to screw around with someone if you're dating, but what about me? You treat me casually, too. Don't act like you weren't getting anything out of what we were doing. Even that night," his smirk was empty and almost threatening as he glared at Naruto, "You were practically _begging_ me to fuck you."

Naruto shoved him off in disgust. This wasn't going at all how he'd expected. How had his confession turned into an all-out fight between them?

"Do you mean all that?" He asked, hands fisted at his sides. "Everything you just said, did you mean it?"

"Of course. It's true, isn't it? I'm that guy you go to between girlfriends. And you're that guy I go to when you can be bothered to give me the time of day."

Naruto had to laugh. "Oh man do you have it all wrong."

"How am I wrong? Do you feel guilty now because Yahiko told you that you'd hurt my feelings by rejecting me? Or, did you want to get back at me by kissing the one man you've known all along I had feelings for?"

Wait. Did he hear that right? A cold sense of dread began to grow inside his chest.

"You... you're in love with Yahiko then?" Naruto asked.

Sasuke's only answer was a glare, so Naruto nodded. He had his answer.

"If that's how you feel then I guess there's no explanation I can give for why I kissed him that would matter. I was only thinking about myself, but it wasn't my intention to take him away from you or to hurt you, Sasuke."

"Then apologize," Sasuke insisted. "You were in the wrong for what you did. Apologize."

His eyes widened in surprise, but he couldn't argue. If that's how Sasuke felt, then Naruto had done one of the worst things he possibly could to someone he called his best friend.

"I'm sorry," he replied. "You're right. I'm..."

Something wet rolled down his cheek. The anger on Sasuke's face suddenly changed into a look of concern and confusion. Sasuke reached out and caught another tear as it fell.

"I'm sorry," Naruto repeated.

 _I'm sorry for having these feelings when they're only a burden to you_.

"This isn't how I wanted our conversation to go," he confessed. "I'm sorry for not realizing how selfish I've been."

"Naruto..." Sasuke tried to take hold of his face, but Naruto pushed him away and used his hand to wipe at his nose.

"It's fine. I told you to tell me if you wanted to spend time with him. I told you I didn't wanna be a cockblock. Why'd you - ... why'd you give me hope, huh?"

"You're not making any sense." Sasuke took a step forward, but Naruto took a step back. This went on until Sasuke had him against the door. "Explain it to me. Now."

"I... the reason I kissed Yahiko was because... I've had these feelings lately that... maybe... "

It was hard, but he had to keep going. Nothing could move on from here if he kept it inside. Not for him, and not for Sasuke.

"I thought I might be bi, so I asked him to kiss me. You know, so that I'd know if I was into guys or just... into you... maybe."

He swallowed when Sasuke didn't say anything and only gave him that cold, unreadable stare.

"That's a pretty twisted joke even for you," Sasuke finally said.

"It's not a joke."

"You've told me you're straight all this time, and now you suddenly think you're bisexual but failed to mention it to me? Is this why you've been hanging out so much with Sai, going to gay clubs, and now kissing Yahiko?" Sasuke interrupted him. "You think you're attracted to men now? Naruto. You - "

"You're wrong! What I learned tonight is that I'm not attracted to guys. It didn't do anything for me when Yahiko and I kissed."

Sasuke snorted. "Yeah. This is convincing. This is... so much more messed up than I anticipated. You thought you were into men, hm? Great. Well, I'm glad you felt like you couldn't talk to me about it and decided to go to Yahiko, a perfect stranger to you and my first lover. Did you think I'd treat you differently even if you were bisexual? Could you be more insulting?"

"No, you asshole!"

Losing his temper, he pushed Sasuke until he hit the edge of the bed and was forced to sit.

"It's you, okay? It's you that I'm attracted to! The feelings I kept having more and more when you and I are together are happening because I'm attracted to you. Exactly how I've always been attracted to girls, I. Am. Attracted. To you. For all I know, I may even be _in love_ with you, but I've never _been_ in love, so I wasn't fucking sure tonight until I kissed Yahiko because he's the only goddam person I know of who's been attracted to men and women and who could help me figure out if I was a little bit gay or just gay for you. Okay? Fuck!"

He turned his back on Sasuke. God. It was out there, and he was angry, and he also wanted to run out that fucking door because he was embarrassed and afraid, and he couldn't look Sasuke in the eye right now because if he got rejected -

"Naruto."

He could hear the mattress squeak as Sasuke got to his feet again and took several quick steps until he was standing directly behind him.

"Naruto. Look at me. You can't say all of that and not look at me."

Sasuke took hold of his shoulder and spun him around.

"Say it again."

"Which part," he mumbled, wiping at his eyes. "I said a lot of things."

"The part where you may have feelings for me."

"I'm sorry," he said. "I'm sorry that I couldn't treat you like everyone else, or that I'm gonna be a bother to you because I know you don't like it when people fawn over you - "

Sasuke touched his cheek. "Say it. Say it so that I can believe it. So that I know it's real and it's not my mind playing tricks on me. Say it so I know it's not a dream."

Naruto didn't understand, even as he looked into Sasuke's eyes. "I...love you, Sasuke. I think I'm in love with you or something. I don't know, but I hate thinking about you with other guys, and I have no explanation for why, when I'm with you, we're not together in the same way I'd expect be with a girl I liked."

Sasuke took in a deep breath and closed his eyes. "If it weren't for your stupid boundaries, I'd have stripped you by now and thrown you on top of my bed. Why are you saying things like this to me, huh?"

He leaned in so close that his breath blew hot in Naruto's ear.

"Do you mean it? You... have feelings for me?"

"I do," he replied. "I think I do. No. I know I do because with you like this I'm findin' it hard keeping my hands to myself."

"But, we shouldn't, right?" Sasuke asked and the uncertainty in his voice only excited Naruto more. "We should talk about this. What it means for us..."

"I don't even know if you feel the same."

Sasuke backed up, just barely, but enough to look Naruto in the eye. "Don't you?"

He didn't really. There were times he thought so, but after last month, he couldn't have believed it with any real confidence.

"We don't have to talk about it now," Naruto said. "Nothing's changed really. Right? I mean, I'm still me and you're still you, it's just that - "

"You're gay for me apparently."

"Hey. I don't like being labeled."

Sasuke searched his face. "...God, I want to touch you."

He bit at his lip, stifling a smile. "I'm excited."

"Are you?"

When Sasuke tilted his head, a piece of hair fell across his eyes. Naruto reached for it and tucked it behind his ear.

"That's my gesture of affection," said Sasuke. "Get your own."

Naruto laughed softly and pulled him into a hug. He breathed Sasuke in as if he could become a part of him somehow. "I'm gonna take a shower and calm down, okay? If you wanna talk about it tonight we can, or we can discuss it in the morning."

Sasuke's arms were wrapped tightly around his waist. "Maybe I should go with you. I can help you clean those hard to reach places."

"Ass." Naruto grabbed his shoulders and pushed him off. "Obviously we don't have issues when it comes to the sex stuff. Boundaries are still in place until otherwise noted."

"Is this because it's your fertile time of the month and you're afraid I'll impregnate you?"

Naruto shook his head. "You watch too much weird shit on the internet."

"Hn."

He pushed past Sasuke and went to retrieve his backpack so that he could find the pajama bottoms that he'd brought from home. Sasuke remained standing by the door, watching him. Naruto wondered if Sasuke felt as giddy as he did right now. His friend's cheeks were flush, and he could tell just by the look in his eye what was on his mind. But, dammit, they shouldn't jump right into bed. They should talk about this stuff like adults. After all, the situation hadn't entirely changed for Sasuke. The only difference was that Naruto's feelings were out in the open.

"Okay, I'll be back in a little. Try not to fall asleep on me like you did that one time."

"Are you always going to bring that up?" Sasuke asked as Naruto walked up to the door and reached for the doorknob.

"So uncool, Sasuke."

"Hm? I'm always cool."

Naruto opened the door to leave, but there was a tug at the back of his shirt. He looked over his shoulder and smiled.

"What?"

"I don't want you to go."

"You're bein' pretty gay. Even for you."

Sasuke wet his bottom lip with his tongue. "Can I at least think about you in the shower? Or is even my imagination subject to your restrictions?"

"See. You can only think about sex. I'm a person, too, you know. With feelings."

"Mm. Totally. A person. Yeah. That's how I think of you. All the time."

"Uh huh." Naruto was grinning widely now. "You fuckin' liar. I'm goin'."

Once again, he tried to leave, but, for a second time, was tugged back into the room by Sasuke.

"Really, Sasuke?"

"Fine. I can behave." Sasuke gave him a push that sent him stumbling into the hallway. "Make sure to use my shampoo and soap."

"Tch. Don't tell me what to do," he muttered from the other side of the hall. Naruto flipped on the bathroom lights and smirked. "I'm gonna touch myself while I'm in there."

"Go ahead." Sasuke was smirking as he leaned against the door frame. "Just try to think about me and not Yahiko."

"I'll make it up to you," he replied, his cheeks burning for some reason.

With a small wave of departure, he turned his back on Sasuke and walked into the bathroom, feeling content and a little like he should've done this a hell of a lot sooner.


	8. Cheap Thrills V

Sasuke's eyes fluttered open as Naruto finally returned to the bedroom. Apparently more tired than he realized, his body felt unusually heavy as he lay on his side, facing the bookshelf.

"Sasuke, you awake?" Naruto slipped under the covers and, surprising him, molded himself to his back while casually slinging an arm over his waist.

"What are you doing?" He asked when Naruto pulled him even closer. "I thought that you wanted boundaries."

"Boundaries?" Naruto's laughter was husky and low. He sounded mature, older. "Is it unusual for me to cuddle you like this? I'm cold after my shower."

Sasuke let out a sigh. "I almost fell asleep, I think."

"I'm sure you're tired," Naruto whispered and placed a kiss to the shell of his ear.

Had the conversation from before made Naruto bolder about showing affection? It's not like he had any complaints. If anything, the warmth from this kind of intimacy started as a tiny spiral inside his stomach and kept growing until his whole upper body felt hot.

"Would you... say it again?" He asked.

Sasuke shivered as Naruto's hand traced up to his chest and down again, skirting the waistband of his pajama bottoms.

"Say what?"

"How you feel... about me. I want to hear you say it again."

There was another husky laugh that raised even more goosebumps all across his skin.

"Are you feeling insecure tonight, hm?" Naruto asked.

"Insecure? Hardly," he replied defensively. Naruto made him sound like he was needy.

"It's okay. I don't mind telling you, Sasuke."

Naruto dragged a hand up his body until it lay flat over his heart.

"I love you, Sasuke. I love everything about you. I love how talented you are, how smart, how funny, even how competitive you are. I feel lucky that you're with me right now, and I love that you make me want to be a better person."

He shivered again as Naruto kissed the back of his neck and along his bare shoulder.

"I make you want to be a better person?" He asked. "That should be my line."

"Mm." Suddenly, Naruto - confidently and more assuredly than he ever remembered him being - slid a hand inside Sasuke's pants and took hold of him.

It had been so long since they'd done anything, even kiss, that Sasuke couldn't protest even if he wanted to. Not that he had any reservations other than he thought Naruto wanted to talk first. The grip Naruto had on him felt more possessive than usual, too, and he stroked Sasuke with a practiced ease that had him fully hard in less than a couple of minutes.

"Sasuke, Sasuke," Naruto said his name tauntingly, "Are you not gonna let me draw this out? You act like it's been months."

"It's been long enough," he gasped when Naruto bit at a spot between his shoulder and neck. "What have you been doing to get so good at this?"

"What do you mean? I've had a lot of experience jerking you off... of course, I have my own experience I've built up jerking myself off - "

"Naruto," he moaned, unable to control it.

"That's it. Let me hear you. Say my name, Sasuke. Say it, and I'll make you come hard."

Sasuke, overwhelmed with this new side of Naruto, felt the climax building already. Naruto's mouth, his hand, his voice, the warmth and firmness of his body as he held Sasuke in place -

" _Naruto_."

He was almost there, just a little more -

Naruto laughed again, but, this time, it wasn't husky - it was mocking and youthful. He was about to snap at him for being so cocky when his whole body began to shake.

"Sasuke."

Naruto's voice and laughter… but it sounded so far away.

"Sasuke. _Wake_ up."

He cracked open his eyes, his breaths coming out shallow and quick. Naruto had a grip on his arm, apparently having been trying to wake him for a while. Sasuke lay on his back, the sheet on top of him being lifted by an ill-timed erection. Meanwhile, Naruto moved to the other side of the bed and propped his head up on his hand. He grinned mischievously at Sasuke and let out a laugh at his apparent predicament.

"Sorry to wake you," Naruto said. "I waited as long as I could, but you were startin' to get loud."

"I was... dreaming?" He covered his eyes. How? That had felt so real.

"Yeah, you fell asleep on me. _Again_." Naruto folded his arms under his head.

He felt disappointed for some reason. Like he'd been ripped out of another life and dropped somewhere unknown.

"I... you were taking so long in the shower I must have passed out," he said.

"Don't pin this on me. I thought we were gonna talk, too. Now it's gonna have to wait until morning."

"Talk...? Right... you." He was about to roll over when he remembered his little problem.

"You, uh, must've been having a pretty good dream," Naruto remarked, smirking at him.

"I was."

"And... what were you dreaming about... or... well... who were you dreaming about?"

Sasuke smiled at him. "Why. Worried it wasn't you?"

"N-no. Of course not," Naruto protested. "I... you can't control what you dream about."

"Hn." Sasuke lay his arm between them. Naruto followed the movement with his eyes before looking at him again. "If it's any consolation. It was you."

"Really?" Naruto perked up, his blue eyes expressive even in the near darkness. "I did think... maybe I heard you say my name. What, uh, was happening exactly?"

"You want details? What about your _boundaries_?"

"If you're only telling me about a dream, it shouldn't be that big of a deal."

"If you must know," Sasuke teased him, "You came back from the shower and slipped into bed with me. I was on my side, with my back to you. I couldn't see you, but you were different somehow. You sounded older, and you spoke to me like we were..."

Naruto looked at him inquisitively. "'Like we were'...?"

"Like we'd been lovers a long time," he answered, looking directly at him. "Even the way you touched me made me feel like we'd been doing it for years."

"You dreamed of a future us? Where we're together? Like, _together_ -together?"

"It's as you said," he moved his hand again, amused at the way Naruto kept following it with his eyes, "I can't help what I dream."

"True. I did say that." Naruto, slipping one arm out from under his head, reached for Sasuke's hand. The motion was tentative at first, but then he fully grasped and held onto it. "Is this okay?"

"This is definitely okay," he replied in partial wonder, reminded of the Naruto in his dream. "But, I agree with what you said earlier. We should talk about what this means for the both of us."

"Okay." Naruto squeezed his hand.

"Have you been up this whole time, or did I wake you?" He asked him softly.

Even though he'd always had such strong feelings for Naruto, he felt different. Knowing Naruto felt the same as he did, it was just so... He kept hearing the dream version of Naruto in his ear.

 _You make me want to be a better person_.

Did Naruto... this Naruto in front of him... feel that way, too? Was he good enough for him? The him right now?

"Nah. I was lyin' here thinkin' when you started movin' around and... breathing heavy. I thought I'd watch for a while. I even considered givin' you a hand, but I did say boundaries are still in place."

"I'm surprised I didn't end up having an accident, so you must've woken me just in time."

"That doesn't sound like a good thing," Naruto murmured, playing with Sasuke's hand until he began an impromptu game of thumb wrestling.

Sasuke let him win because he looked adorable with his messy blond mop of hair and that stupid grin on his face. He could tell Naruto was happy.

"I win," Naruto said proudly and graced him with a ridiculously roguish smile.

"You're really good looking. You know that?"

Naruto blinked at him and then, as he always did when embarrassed, let out a nervous laugh and rubbed the side of his nose. "You're embarrassin' me. You actually sound like you mean it."

"I do."

Having calmed enough to roll to his side, he reached for a strand of blond hair while his other hand remained joined with Naruto's.

"Do I deserve you?" He asked.

"Why are you askin' things like that?"

"Dream you said a lot of good things."

Naruto gave a nod. "Ah, I see. You're cheatin' on me with another me already."

"Don't be stupid," he replied, tucking the piece of hair behind the other teen's ear. "There's only one you, and this isn't a dream."

"Who knows," said Naruto. "Physicists say there could be all kinds of alternate universes out there. We may be livin' all kinds of lives we don't know about."

"I thought you didn't like that kind of thing."

"Well, I may not be as smart as you, but I do think about things like that sometimes."

"I didn't mean anything by it," he replied, giving him a smile and another squeeze to his hand. "There's not a whole lot I don't like about you, and even your flaws are... very attractive."

"You keep saying all these things I wanna hear," Naruto whispered.

"Even when we were fighting earlier?"

"For us, fighting has always been like foreplay. You know that."

Sasuke laughed, and Naruto, this time, was the one to reach across and cup Sasuke's cheek. Naruto gazed into his eyes, pensive and earnest. It was such a sober look that Sasuke also adopted a more serious expression.

"What is it, Naruto?"

"I wanna show you."

"Show me?"

Biting his lip, Naruto shifted closer; the bed springs let out a squeak under his weight.

"I want to show you what I've been feeling," Naruto explained. "I want you to see that relationships aren't scary. I'm no expert, obviously, but... Sasuke."

"Mm?" He placed his hand at Naruto's waist.

Naruto leaned in, breath warming his skin as it hit the side of his neck. "Boundaries... off."

Sasuke stared, unable to move even though every part of his body screamed for him to take Naruto in his arms. Not that he needed do anything, as it was Naruto who moved in for the first kiss. His lips had barely touched Sasuke's and already his eyelids were falling shut, body succumbing to this spell that Naruto had over him. One of them made a noise of wanting into the kiss, and it was probably him. He perched a hand on Naruto's hipbone while the other teen's hand began moving up the center of his back, blunt nails scraping skin and making him moan -

They kissed, sometimes passionately and other times more tenderly. It was clear they were making up for the month of having done absolutely nothing. Naruto, after rolling him over, crawled on top of him. Being underneath him felt so good, so right.

It wasn't the first time he'd fantasized about Naruto taking him, but this time felt different. He wanted to give Naruto anything he asked for, including himself.

"Sasuke," Naruto murmured as he attached himself to Sasuke's neck and sucked on him.

Sasuke continued to hold him in his arms. The pleasure that started to re-build in his body wasn't the usual urgency to get off. Instead, it was something that hinted of being long-lasting and threatened to overwhelm him emotionally. Already, he felt like he was sinking into the mattress, barely holding onto consciousness as Naruto's lips and nimble fingers began pushing him toward the edge again. Naruto's own feelings were coming through in every gesture he bestowed Sasuke - the way he touched, kissed, and even the way he said his name.

"Naruto," he murmured. Wanting, needing, _longing_. "Yes."

He spoke as if Naruto had asked him a question. Then, Naruto was moving lower, down his body. Too far from his lips, so Sasuke growled his displeasure. But, when he felt Naruto begin to put his talented tongue to good use, he forgot all about being disgruntled. Naruto set him on fire as he licked up his thighs, teased him, groped him, and, finally, took Sasuke's aching cock into his mouth. He watched through a lust-filled haze as Naruto's head bobbed between his legs. This pull - what was it? It felt too good to be real. Another dream?

Just when he thought he was going to lose his mind, Naruto reached for his hand. Sasuke gripped it like it like a lifeline, using it as an anchor to keep him in the moment instead of drowning in pleasure.

Is this what Naruto wanted to show him? If so, why had he held back all this time? He was so stupid. He should've told Naruto how he felt a long time ago. What was the reason again that he'd kept silent? Ah... he couldn't remember. He only felt Naruto's mouth, the warmth of their hands, their intertwined fingers. It was new and... so overwhelming. _Too_ overwhelming. Could he die from this much pleasure? Experiencing this with Naruto certainly made it feel very possible.

* * *

So much for waiting to talk it out like he'd intended. Being forced to watch Sasuke have a wet dream right in front of his eyes had already driven him to this point. He was a simple person and always very physical, so sex was one of the easiest ways for Naruto to show his loyalty and affection. Now that he'd confessed, now that his feelings were out there and Sasuke hadn't rejected him, he had this unbelievable desire to make him feel good.

Normally when they hooked up, it was quick, dirty, and all about getting off or just having a good time. Tonight, he wanted this to be different. Sasuke was already so out of it, too, that Naruto was getting hard just from watching him. There was something thrilling about having Sasuke's full attention, even down to the way he gripped Naruto's hand and wouldn't let it go. He closed his eyes as he took Sasuke in deeper. Who would've thought there would be a point in his life when giving a blowjob could actually excite him? Drawing this out would've been ideal, but as Sasuke's thigh muscles tensed beneath his other hand, he knew he was close. Naruto raised his eyes, meeting Sasuke's and, with only a squeeze to his hand as warning, Sasuke came while covering his mouth. Naruto swallowed everything, his weight keeping Sasuke's shaking body from arching off of the bed. He was slow to let him slip free of his mouth, but when he finally backed off, it was to gently lick up the sides of his cock and place an open-mouthed, affectionate kiss to the tip.

Looking sated, Sasuke gave him a tug and drew him up the length of the bed. Naruto lay on top of him, although he lifted up briefly to pull Sasuke's pants up, inhaling the scent of sex and sweat.

"What was that?" Sasuke's breathing was labored.

"I believe in some circles they call that a blowjob," he replied, chuckling as he showered Sasuke's throat with kisses.

"It felt different."

"Did it? I guess that's the power of love."

Sasuke cupped one of his cheeks and looked at Naruto in such a way that made it impossible for him to stop grinning.

"What is it?"

Sasuke shook his head.

"Don't be shy," Naruto told him, leaning into Sasuke's hand. "Pretty sure we can tell each other anything at this point."

"When have we not?" Sasuke's thumb moved in an arch across his cheekbone.

"Well, to be fair, you still haven't told me that you like me."

"Of course I like you," Sasuke replied. "Who kissed whom in the locker room almost as soon as we met?"

"What? That doesn't count. You were caught up in the relief of finally tellin' someone other than your brother that you were gay. I'm the one who spent the next week figurin' out if you could even tolerate bein' around me or were just bein' extremely polite. Remember when I was ready to kiss you when we were about to get on the bus? You totally rejected me!"

"I did freak out a little."

"Ah! You admit it!"

Sasuke pulled him down and, after a brief pause for a shared look, kissed him.

Forgetting what they were even talking about, Naruto kissed him harder as this new feeling swelled inside his chest. This was something he'd half-experienced while dating girls. Maybe it was this sense of belonging to someone and having them belong only to you. They hadn't quite clarified they were even taking that next step yet, but knowing they both seemed to be on the same page still made it exciting and new. Naruto wanted Sasuke to want the same thing. He wanted them to try a relationship because, for him, they'd practically been in one this entire time (ignoring that whole him dating girls and Sasuke sleeping with strangers part).

When they finished kissing, Naruto gently brushed his fingers through Sasuke's hair.

"You know," he said. "You're pretty good lookin' for a guy."

Sasuke's fingers grazed across his stomach. "Can I ask you something?"

"If it's to tell me to go brush my teeth, we may have a problem 'cause I forgot my toothbrush."

Sasuke frowned. "That wasn't what I was going to ask, but you know I always keep extras for you under the sink."

"So, we can swap body fluids, but we can't share the same toothbrush?"

"As I was saying..." He narrowed his eyes at Naruto.

Naruto went back to playing with his hair. He also had to adjust himself since - well, that whole getting Sasuke off thing had left him a little excited.

"Problems?" Sasuke smirked.

"I'm good, thanks. Ask your question."

While he waited, he placed some more kisses to the side of Sasuke's neck and even used his teeth to tug at his ear. He growled quietly when Sasuke's hand found its way to his lower back and he started to sneak his fingers underneath the waistband of Naruto's pants. He shut his eyes for a second and let his teeth graze Sasuke's throat as a warning.

"How are you attracted to me?" Sasuke asked near his ear.

"What do you mean?"

"If you're not attracted to men, but you say you have feelings for me. How does that work? Are you physically attracted to me at all? Or, is it something else?"

"Huh? How could I get hard if I wasn't physically attracted to you in some way?"

"I don't know. Maybe you get caught up in the moment. Maybe you're imagining something else in your mind?"

"What, like you wearing women's clothing?" Naruto stopped what he was doing to look at him in amusement.

"I'm only asking because I'm curious," said Sasuke. "I'm not trying to offend you. I only want to understand how a man who identifies as straight can have feelings for another man."

"If I knew anything about that, I doubt I would've kissed Yahiko. I guess, hm. Mentally, I'm really attracted to you. I've always been drawn to you. I was from the first week we met, but it's not like I had any reference for those feelings. I thought maybe I just really looked up to you and admired you, but the more we hung out, and the more physical things got between us... I dunno. It didn't make sense. That I always wanted to be with you if we were apart. That I felt lonely if I didn't talk to you on the phone at night. Or, if you weren't paying me attention, if you weren't looking at me or touching me, I felt..."

Sasuke's fingernails scraped a trail up his spine. Those dark eyes that always thrilled and excited him with their intelligence and humor showed that Sasuke knew what he meant because he'd felt the same. He swallowed hard. Naruto knew his own feelings but to think of Sasuke as having ever felt something even close to this for _him_ … it was a little overwhelming somehow.

"What did you feel?" Sasuke asked tenderly and, taking hold of a piece of his hair, slid it into place behind his ear.

"Don't laugh, but it feels a little like knowing the sun will never rise again."

Sasuke smirked and, embarrassed, Naruto tucked his head under Sasuke's chin and lightly pounded on his chest as punishment.

"I said not to laugh," he mumbled.

"I'm not laughing."

"You are. You think I'm dumb 'cause I'm so bad at words."

"You aren't at all. It's that you're as earnest as usual. It's only embarrassing that you can be so honest."

He picked his head up to look at him. "I wanna be honest with you, though. Out of anyone in this world, I absolutely have to be honest with you."

"Why?"

"Because."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow and, reaching up, traced Naruto's lips with his thumb. He kissed it.

"I think I would blow worlds apart just for this little thumb," he said.

"For this thumb that you just wrestled and pinned so brutally with your own thumb?"

"I know you let me win." He grinned. "Even though you're usually such a sore loser."

"I suppose that's how you know I lo-" Sasuke stopped, turned red, and cleared his throat.

"What was that?" Naruto's smile broadened. "What were you gonna say?"

"Nevermind the details," replied Sasuke, conveniently redirecting his gaze to a corner of the room. But, Naruto taking hold of his chin, forced him to look his way.

"It'd be nice if you said it, but you don't have to."

Sasuke touched Naruto's chest and settled his hand there. "I wouldn't want to steal your thunder. It's very cute, looking back, how you had to work yourself up to confessing. Is this something you'd been planning?"

"Me? Plan something?"

"True. Still. How long," Sasuke bit his lip, "Have you felt the way you do? About me?"

"God, you're sexy when you get all coy on me."

Sasuke slapped him lightly on the cheek. "Stay on topic."

"Mm. Even when you're rough, that's sexy, too. Now that we might start dating, I think a whole new door just opened for us to - "

"Naruto."

"Yeah?"

Sasuke's arm dropped onto the bed. "Dating is..."

Naruto lost some of his good humor at Sasuke's tone. "Dating is...?"

"I'm going to need time. I agree that... I should talk to my parents. But, let me just figure out a plan. I guarantee you my father isn't going to just open his arms to this and invest in a rainbow pride flag when he finds out I'm gay."

"I know," he said soberly. "I'm not givin' you an ultimatum or anything. These are my feelings, and, yeah, I'd like us to go on a date, but I don't wanna do it behind your parents' backs. I don't wanna sneak around, and I don't wanna see you lie to them."

"You'd tell your dad?" Sasuke asked.

"Yeah. I would. If he doesn't know already."

"How would he know?"

"Please. Sasuke. Have I ever been very good at hidin' anything?"

"No." Sasuke sighed. "If we were to date," he made a face that Naruto tried not to be offended by, "What are your expectations?"

Naruto let out a laugh. "Like, sex-wise?"

"No, idiot." Sasuke flicked him on the shoulder. "What's the game plan?"

"Again with the plans you think I have."

"Hn. I don't know if you remember this, but you said you wanted to go to college in Illinois. Not that I'm thinking long-term. It's only an example."

"Okay. Hypothetically. Uh. I guess if, say, we were to date, and we dated up until then, there are a couple of options. You go with me to the same college or at least in the same vicinity, or, I stay here. Northwestern's a good school, and it's kinda close to Northern."

"Father might forgive me being gay if I ended up in their graduate business program. However, I'm sure he'd be disappointed I wasn't going to Stanford like Itachi."

"I'm only saying it's an option. U of I's really great, too. That's only a couple of hours away."

"I want to go to the University of Washington," Sasuke said. "You know that. I can take business classes like father wants while building my network of contacts at shows and clubs."

"I know. I'm only givin' you the options as I see 'em. Chicago has a music scene, too, you know. And... I'm not opposed to stayin' here. I was only goin' back to be with my friends."

"You?" Sasuke smirked. "Have friends?"

"You're a friend." Naruto pushed his hair back on the sides for him. "If that's not obvious."

"Only a friend?" Sasuke's hand found its way to the back of Naruto's neck and pulled him closer.

"Best friend," Naruto replied through his growing smile. "Lover?"

"Boyfriend."

Naruto's heart stopped. "What did you just say?"

"Isn't that what I'd be to you if we dated?"

"Sasuke Uchiha, my boyfriend?" Naruto scrunched his nose before letting out a laugh and burying his face in Sasuke's neck.

Sighing, Sasuke set his hand on top of his head. "Figures that you'd react like a grade schooler."

"Oh, right. When did you become so mature, huh?"

Sasuke pet his head. "I'll have to give you a nickname."

"What, like babe or honey? Babe I can live with, but honey is a little too Honeymooners."

"I'll think of something." He continued to stroke Naruto's hair. "Pet, maybe?"

"Heh. I can't see you doin' that, but it's sorta cute."

"Cute?" Sasuke repeated with some slight disgust apparent in his tone.

"Aye." Naruto, raising himself off of Sasuke, grabbed both of his wrists and pinned them to the bed. "Even you, as crabby and moody as you get sometimes, are capable of bein' cute. In as masculine a fashion as any other guy, of course."

"Now you're just being patronizing." He lifted his leg and wedged it between Naruto's, rubbing it against him.

"If you're not careful," he said, "You might release the Kraken."

"Jesus, you can't be serious even for a second."

"Jesus is my pet name now? I thought it was pet."

Sasuke, eyes closed, shook his head as he struggled against Naruto's hold.

"I know I'm a sex god, but, really, Sasuke. No need to address me so formally."

"Naruto?"

"Yes, babe?"

Sasuke's eyes snapped open and immediately narrowed at him; Naruto was grinning so wide it was starting to hurt.

"Why are you so optimistic?" Sasuke asked. "This isn't going to be as easy as you think, especially not for me."

"I know."

"How can you know? I could be disowned, and that's not even an exaggeration."

"Itachi and your mom won't let that happen," he argued. "Even if they kick you out, you can always stay with me and dad."

"You just said that it wouldn't happen!"

"It's good to have contingency plans, right?"

"You said five minutes ago that you never plan anything!"

"Why are you starting to panic?" Naruto let go of his wrists, and, grabbing hold of Sasuke's arm, rolled them both over so that he lay underneath him. "Usually you're so in control, Sasuke. It's what I like about you."

Sasuke did regain some of his usual cool composure. "Even having shared a bed with you, I still can't figure whether you're a sadist or a masochist."

"Doesn't the term switch apply to that, too?"

"What do you know about switching?" Sasuke asked, bringing his face close to Naruto's. "If we date, you're going to bottom."

"On what grounds?" Naruto smirked. "All that experience you have as a top?"

"I don't need experience to be able to top someone like you."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You," said Sasuke, "Want to be dominated by me."

No denying that sent a tingle to certain parts of his anatomy, but like hell he'd show any kind of reaction to Sasuke's taunting.

"You," Sasuke shifted over and spoke close to his ear, "Would be happy to beg for my attention. Wouldn't you, Naruto?"

He swallowed hard. "Would you make me beg for it, Sasuke?"

Sasuke's hot breath fanned across his neck and then he slid his tongue into Naruto's ear. Unable to help it, he moaned, but Sasuke was quick to cover his mouth. Naruto glanced sidelong at him, stirred by Sasuke's words. It wasn't necessarily that he felt some need to be dominated or put in his place, but, admittedly, Sasuke's control and coolness were extremely attractive qualities, as they were the opposite of him: impulsive, loud, and totally scattered at times.

"I wouldn't make you beg," Sasuke whispered, rubbing his thigh against Naruto's crotch again. "But I wouldn't mind taking you over the edge. I wouldn't mind hearing you whimper underneath me. I wouldn't mind showing you that receiving pleasure is as good as giving it. We've not even tried anything like that, but with everything you've said to me tonight, there is a part of me, Naruto, that," Sasuke snuck his hand into his pants and gripped his erection, "Wants to break you, control you, and make you mine."

Naruto opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out except an exhale of air.

"Speechless already?" Sasuke asked, pulling down his pants and boxers. "Maybe you didn't know what you were signing up for, hm?"

"Sasuke," he croaked and tried to find strength enough to get up onto his elbows at least.

Sasuke let him, and then it was all a blur as their mouths crashed together while he thrust his hips into Sasuke's fisted hand. He felt his body being pulled up by Sasuke, who stripped off his clothes the rest of the way and yanked him off of the bed. He shoved Naruto into the desk chair, which gave him just enough time to catch his breath before he wondered why Sasuke had stopped what they were doing to turn on his laptop.

"Naruto, if I've learned anything about you it's that you like things to be different every time we fool around." He turned around as the computer booted and dragged Naruto over to where he wanted him.

"What are you doing?" Naruto asked.

"Keeping you from getting bored."

He glanced at the computer, growing more curious when Sasuke turned on his webcam.

"Don't worry," said Sasuke as he took in Naruto's surprised expression. "It's only recording and not streaming."

"You... exhibitionist!"

After repositioning the laptop one last time, Sasuke stood in front of him without a trace of humor on his face.

"Are you serious?"

"I don't look serious?" Sasuke asked.

They were both looking at themselves on the screen. Jesus. Sasuke was this ballsy that he was going to film them doing stuff? It made him nervous, but it also really excited him.

Naruto was still watching them on the screen when Sasuke sank to his knees in front of the chair and, taking hold of Naruto's hips, dragged him forward without warning. It took less than three seconds of Sasuke's mouth on his dick to make him forget all about the webcam.

* * *

He pried Naruto's thighs apart, acutely aware of his own brazenness. But it was true that Naruto was stimulated by variety and even danger. Although, it didn't hurt knowing he'd now have a video of him getting Naruto off that he could rewatch over and over. Sasuke ran a hand down the other teen's taut thigh to his calf, then back again. Because he knew Naruto liked it, he kept eye contact while wrapping his lips around him. Naruto set a hand on the back of his head while applying some slight pressure. Taking hold of him in his hand, Sasuke slid back far enough to drag his tongue across the tip and suckle on it. It made a wet noise that got Naruto to grip the armrests.

"Don't forget to keep quiet," he murmured, giving Naruto's length another long, sensuous lick.

With Naruto's gaze trained on him, Sasuke grabbed him around his thighs and dragged him forward until Naruto's legs had no place to go but over his shoulders. Raising himself onto his knees, he took Naruto into his mouth again, loving the quiet moan he received in return for his efforts. Naruto placed both hands on Sasuke's head, simultaneously pushing on him and pulling at his hair. While Sasuke sucked him off, he let his hands trail all over Naruto's naked body - up to his chest and back down his stomach to the outside of his thighs. Every once in a while, Naruto's hands brushed along his shoulders or his back, massaging and soothing him.

He was so used to doing this to Naruto, but somewhere in the midst of it, the gravity of the things Naruto said tonight suddenly hit him. Naruto admitted having feelings for him, something he'd never thought possible, and while he knew he'd yet to return the sentiment verbally, this overwhelming sensation began to weigh on him. It started to make everything they were doing more intense. Could he treat Naruto as his now? Could he be satisfied knowing no one else could touch Naruto like this? Wasn't he the only one who could make him feel this way? The more Naruto moved underneath him, reacted to his touches, sighed, and tried to hold back his moans, the more Sasuke wanted to take this further. He kept imagining all kinds of erotic positions he could put Naruto in - how many Naruto could put him in. He didn't mean to, but he moaned low around Naruto's cock while one hand reached under to cup his balls and squeeze.

"Fuck," Naruto hissed and jerked his hips.

Sasuke was slow to lift his gaze, having been caught up in his own desire. He let Naruto fall from his lips, and, taking hold of his shaft, pumped him while they made eye contact. In that instant, Sasuke didn't think he'd ever wanted anything more other than to please the man in front of him.

Naruto swiped at the corner of his mouth with a thumb. "You're so fucking hot, Sasuke."

He licked his lips, heart racing. "What do you want?"

Naruto's eyes traveled lower as watched himself being jerked off. "Anything you want."

"Don't say 'anything'. I might not be able to stop myself tonight."

"I've got it under control." Naruto smirked, gaze drawing back to him. He curled his fingers around the back of Sasuke's neck and, meeting him halfway, Sasuke also leaned up for a kiss.

Naruto's tongue passed through his lips, touching Sasuke's. It was one of those kisses that forced just about every past fantasy he'd had of Naruto to the forefront of his mind. Without breaking their kiss, Naruto moved his legs off of Sasuke's shoulders and guided him into his lap. Naruto slipped a hand into his pants, gripped him tight, and started stroking him rough and quick.

"Get hard for me again," Naruto said next to his mouth. "I wanna make you come all night."

"I haven't even... _aah..._ made you come yet."

"I'll come when I've gotten you off twice. Now, take these off."

Naruto pushed him off of his lap and got to his feet, tearing off Sasuke's pajama bottoms before he could so much as regain his balance. When they were both naked and standing face-to-face, Naruto suctioned his lips to Sasuke's shoulder and neck while Sasuke ran his hand over Naruto's ass, cupping underneath his cheeks and squeezing them. Teeth grazed his jaw and chin before Naruto found his mouth again, kissing him hard and with a possessiveness that Sasuke was experiencing for the first time. Is this what it felt like... to be wanted?

"You've got enough footage," Naruto informed him and, pressing a hand to Sasuke's chest, gave him a hard push toward the bed.

Sasuke stumbled back a few steps, falling on top of the sheets. Naruto, looking confident as hell, came toward him, grabbed him under the knee, and managed to flip him over onto his stomach. This was exciting. And new. He kind of _liked_ the idea of Naruto throwing him around like a ragdoll. What would Naruto do next? He started hoping Naruto might actually give in and fuck him. That made him hard. _Shit_.

The bed squeaked under their weight as Naruto got on behind him and, giving Sasuke's ass a playful slap, told him to move up toward the headboard. Sasuke had just enough time to get on his hands and knees when Naruto took hold of both of his thighs and spread them far apart.

"Naruto," he said, glancing over his shoulder to see what the hell he had in mind.

But, Naruto wasn't looking at him and, despite himself, Sasuke flushed hard knowing that he was intently staring at his ass, now spread wide for him to see everything. There was this brief moment where their eyes met, and the look Naruto gave him was just -

With his hands on Sasuke's asscheeks, Naruto spread him wide and, using his tongue, gave Sasuke's crack a long swipe. He was so stunned that he didn't know whether to be embarrassed, shocked, or so completely turned on that he didn't give a flying fuck what Naruto did to his body. He could do anything, and Sasuke would _beg_ for it. It felt like it wasn't real, like something he only imagined in his dirtiest fantasies. At least until he saw that mop of blond hair, and felt Naruto's tongue drag across his hole several times before he slid it in...

"Oh God," he moaned, and it was _not_ quiet.

Sasuke grabbed the closest pillow and buried his face in it while Naruto continued to make a mess of him. He took hold of his dripping erection and started to jerk himself off. One of Naruto's hands slid between his legs, rubbing the skin between his ass and balls, which he cupped again and rolled between his fingers. _Goddammit, Naruto_. It was too much. It was going to hit him _too_ hard, and he'd wanted to get Naruto off so bad, but -

" _Aaagh_ ," he came again when Naruto's licking became loud and wet, and he drove his tongue _inside_ , "Fuck, Naruto. Yes. God. _Yes_."

If he hadn't been eating that fucking pillow, he would've woken everyone in the whole damn house. And even while he was cumming - hips rocking back and forth - Naruto took hold of his legs and kept him in place so that he couldn't get away. It wasn't until he reached behind and put a hand to Naruto's forehead that he was able to push him off. With a nearly desperate gasp for air, he collapsed on top of the bed, panting loudly as Naruto crawled up his body, laying kisses to his ass, back, shoulders, and arms. Naruto snuggled up against him, nuzzling the nape of his neck.

"I kinda wish we woulda filmed that," Naruto said, sounding very pleased with himself.

Sasuke was too exhausted to respond.

"Sex with you is just... so sexy. Damn. I'm glad I watched all that gay porn."

"What are you talking about, idiot?" He managed to lift up slightly order to look at him over his shoulder. "Since when do you watch gay porn?"

"How else was I gonna learn about all the things you might like?"

Sasuke turned over underneath him, trapped between Naruto's arms. He looked like a wild animal with that blond mane of hair, sharp blue eyes, and hungry expression.

"What else did you learn?" He asked in a low voice.

"Oh, you're bein' coy again."

"I'm not being coy."

"No?"

Smirking, he stretched out his legs and wrapped them around Naruto, his calves touching Naruto's ass while he flexed his toes in the air.

"What are you doing?" Naruto's eyes narrowed.

Not that he gave Sasuke a chance to answer because then they were kissing feverishly again. Had sex ever felt this good or intense? Was it just because he was with Naruto? Or, because they both had mutual feelings for one another? He nipped at Naruto's lips, wanting him to do more and forgetting how to use his words to ask for it. The blond teen's erection kept rubbing against his stomach, so Sasuke reached between them to take hold of him. His heels dug into the backs of Naruto's thighs and, lifting up, situated Naruto so that he could slide against him.

Naruto's body stiffened on top of his, and he tore himself away from Sasuke's lips. "Sasuke?"

"I don't have any resolve," he whispered. "If you want me, you can have me." Sasuke, with Naruto's cock in hand, pressed the tip right up against his entrance.

He watched the way Naruto's tongue slid across his lips as he wet them. But, since he still appeared to be hesitating, Sasuke let him go.

"You don't have to," he said, trying not to sound disappointed or offended.

He wanted it, but Naruto didn't seem to be sure, and just because Sasuke was in a hurry and horny as hell didn't mean that he should force Naruto to cross that final line if he wasn't ready.

"I want to," Naruto said almost apologetically before collapsing on top of him.

Sasuke put an arm around him. "I'll get you off. There's time for that later."

He pushed Naruto up, nudging him at the hip so that he'd lift onto his knees and give him room to get his hand in there. Sasuke gripped him tight and began stroking him roughly while they watched one another.

Biting his lip, Naruto looked only at him, and Sasuke felt wholly satisfied watching his face as it contorted in pleasure. As Naruto came, Sasuke watched that, too, embedding it into his memory as if this would be the last time they would be together like this. He placed a hand to the back of Naruto's head and, with his body shaking, pulled him in for one last kiss without being able to think anything other than _This man is mine. I love him. I want him by my side. I need him. I need this. Give me more. Don't leave me. Wreck me. Break me, just don't fucking give up on me. Naruto._

When they broke apart, Naruto shook beneath his arm still, and after taking in a deep breath, kissed at Sasuke's neck some more.

"I love you, Sasuke," Naruto murmured and, with one last press of his lips to Sasuke's skin, the exhaustion and elation swallowed them both. He could only hope that, in the morning, they'd be able to take that next step toward... an actual relationship with one another.

* * *

During the early morning hours, the sound of a door slamming woke Naruto from strange dreams of being chased by faceless monsters. Next to him, Sasuke lay soundly sleeping. They had fallen asleep facing one another, the sheet barely covering the lower halves of their naked bodies. Since he had to pee, Naruto carefully got out of the bed so as not to wake Sasuke. He grabbed for the comforter and pulled it all the way up to Sasuke's shoulders. In his sleep, Sasuke looked untroubled. It gave Naruto relief for some reason. He was glad that, even after talking to Sasuke about his feelings, that nothing extraordinary had changed between them.

Finding his boxers and pants on the floor, he put them on quickly and ended up stumbling over a shoe in the darkness. Sasuke's computer was still on, which made him wonder if it had been on this entire time. In case Itachi decided to make a surprise room-check in the morning as a joke, he closed out of the program and turned off the computer. Naruto smirked at the thought of Sasuke watching it at his desk when he was all alone, or... maybe they could watch it together? It honestly amazed him how Sasuke always kept surprising him. Even though he'd felt so confident last night, the more he started to think about last night - especially the thing he did with his tongue - Naruto began to blush. He felt embarrassed, but he was also ridiculously happy.

Smiling now, he made his way out of the room and quietly shut the door. Naruto was surprised to see a light on at the end of the hallway. He heard voices talking low in the kitchen and thought it sounded like Mikoto and Itachi. They were speaking to one another in rapid Japanese. Naruto could only pick out a word or two, having been exposed to at least some basic vocabulary after hanging out here so often. It made him curious, so he decided to find out if anything was wrong.

On his way to the kitchen, he nearly ran smack into Itachi, who was looking slightly unfocused and uncharacteristically ruffled as he came around the corner.

"Everything okay?" Naruto asked.

"Just go back to bed, Naruto."

"You sure? I heard a bang earlier."

"...Is Sasuke awake?"

Naruto frowned. "No. He was still asleep when I got out of bed. I was goin' to the bathroom."

"I'd like for you to stay here. Yahiko's helping father into the car. We're taking him to the hospital."

"What?" Naruto's heart did a flip-flop. "Is he okay? What's wrong?"

"He wasn't feeling well yesterday, and mother said he's coughed up some blood. Father says he's alright to move and doesn't want an ambulance. Mother and I will be taking him to the emergency room, and then I'll give you a call and let you know what we find out, okay?"

Naruto nodded numbly. "Uh, yeah. Sure. But, shouldn't you go get Sasuke? I think he'd want to know."

"I would, but father insisted. It's unlikely to be serious. Maybe only an ulcer."

"An ulcer?" He asked. "And that's not serious?"

"Itachi," Mikoto beckoned her son from the kitchen.

She and Itachi shared another exchange in Japanese, but Naruto clearly heard his name being mentioned. Soon after, Mikoto appeared around the corner from the foyer and offered him a weak smile.

"Naruto," she said. "I'm so sorry to wake you."

"Don't worry about me," he replied anxiously. "How's Fugaku?"

"He'll be fine."

Excusing himself, Itachi rushed down the stairs to the basement while Mikoto - dressed in a nightgown and robe - walked up to him and took Naruto in her arms. Instinctively, he hugged her more tightly when she started to shake.

"I'm sure it'll be okay," he said, and Mikoto nodded before stepping away again.

"Please take care of Sasuke. Itachi and I will stay until we know what's happening. There's no reason for the two of you to come. Yahiko will be staying as well if you need anything."

He wanted to argue again about how Sasuke should be told, too, but he also didn't want to add to her worries. She looked tired and pale.

"Yes, ma'am," he said.

"Now go back to bed, Naruto." Mikoto smiled at him again and touched his cheek briefly. "I suppose I should go change." She left him to head upstairs.

Everything inside of him burned to help, but he knew that he'd only get in the way. Remembering why he'd come out of the bedroom in the first place, Naruto made his way to the bathroom. He relieved himself, washed his hands, and then stared into the mirror at his reflection. The panic had, for him, already started triggering flashes of his mother being at the hospital and a whole lot worse than that. He heard the garage door opening. A few more minutes passed, and Naruto ran the sink so that he could splash some water on his face. He walked out of the bathroom only to spot Yahiko coming his way.

"Don't look so worried," Yahiko advised, even offering Naruto a reassuring smile that didn't quite quell his growing anxiety. "Fugaku was making jokes as I helped him get his seatbelt on. He's just in some pain is all."

"Itachi said he thought it was an ulcer?"

"It's likely, but he was also having chest pains, so to be sure, they're taking him to the ER." The older man bit his lip and rubbed the back of his head. "This might be bad timing, but you and Sasuke - did you work things out?"

Naruto blinked several times, not entirely able to process the question at first. "Oh, yeah," he answered distractedly. "Itachi told me I shouldn't tell him, but don't you think we should? There's no way I can go back in there and just fall asleep."

"Mikoto and Fugaku didn't want to worry him."

"Of course he's gonna be worried," he replied, raising his voice. "That's his dad!"

"I won't stop you, but there's really nothing he can do. It could end up being nothing, and, in the morning, they might already be back without it having been a big deal at all."

"What?" Naruto couldn't quite grasp the logic, even though it sounded reasonable. But, not worrying about an ill parent did not compute with him.

"Do you want me to make you some tea?" Yahiko asked, putting a hand on his shoulder, which Naruto shrugged off.

Immediately, he felt guilty about it.

"Sorry," he said. "I didn't mean to do that."

"It's okay. I know you're worried. I'll leave it to you to decide about Sasuke. Come and find me if you want to talk."

He nodded and watched Yahiko as he headed back down the hall.

Biting his lip, Naruto glanced at the closed bedroom door, an overwhelming sense of foreboding making him question whether he should wake Sasuke and tell him. All he could think about was one of the first nights that, at the age of 14, his father came to his bedroom door to tell him he needed to take mom to the hospital after she fainted on the bathroom floor. What if it was worse than everyone thought? If that was the case, and he went inside the room and woke Sasuke up to tell him... and then everything would change for Sasuke from here on out. He knew in his head that it wasn't necessarily the reality of the situation, but the fear was just so... consuming. Still, he owed it to Sasuke. He would tell him calmly. If it was an emergency, they would've called for an ambulance. Decision made, Naruto opened the door and took a seat on the edge the bed. He lay a hand on Sasuke's arm.

"Sasuke," he called, gently giving him a shake. "Sasuke, wake up."

Sasuke roused, but as he wasn't fond of being woken up, swatted Naruto's hand away.

"No more," he mumbled to Naruto. "Two's my limit for tonight."

The corner of Naruto's mouth quirked, but his heart remained heavy.

"Sasuke, come on. Wake up for a second." He pulled harder at his arm until he had Sasuke's full attention.

"What is it?" Sasuke frowned up at him.

"I heard your mom and Itachi talkin' and... uh, they took your dad to the hospital a few minutes ago."

"...What?" Sasuke immediately sat up, his eyes wide. "What are you talking about?"

"You know how he wasn't feelin' well yesterday? I guess he was havin' some severe pain and," he didn't want to mention the whole coughing up blood thing, "Your mom and Itachi drove him to the hospital. They didn't wanna wake you up 'cause - "

Sasuke was off the bed instantly, nearly pushing Naruto out of his way in the process. He must have forgotten his state of undress for a second, but then he ripped the sheet from off and wrapped it around his waist before running out of the room.

Naruto chased after him, calling his name. Sasuke made it all the way to the other end of the hall before he could catch up.

"What the fuck is going on?" Sasuke snapped at Yahiko, who was sitting on the bed, checking his phone.

Naruto appeared next to Sasuke's side. "I... told him."

"So, I see," replied Yahiko. "Sasuke. Your dad's fine. He was having severe stomach pain and there was some blood coming up when he coughed."

"Blood?" Sasuke glared at him. "You didn't mention that he was coughing up blood."

Naruto could only look at him guiltily.

"Don't be angry with Naruto," said Yahiko. "Your mother asked him not to say anything, but he didn't want you to be left in the dark."

"More like, why is everyone making these decisions for me like I'm some kind of child?"

"Sasuke," Naruto scolded and in trying to grab his elbow, Sasuke jerked away from him.

"Which hospital did they go to?" Sasuke demanded to know. "I'll get dressed and drive over there."

"There's nothing you can do." Yahiko got to his feet. "If you go back to sleep, they'll return by the time you get up. If you throw a tantrum because they didn't tell you and decide to go when they've asked you not to, you'll only upset your parents more."

"What the fuck did you just say to me?" Sasuke snarled and stepped up to the older man. "How dare you. That's my father."

Naruto had never heard Sasuke talk to anyone like that and having sensed that Sasuke might turn this fight into something physical, he immediately went to step in between the two of them.

"Sasuke," he said, "Yahiko's right. It's better to do as your parents asked. They'll call if anything happens."

"You," Sasuke turned his angry gaze on him, "You should know how I feel right now. Maybe it's serious. Do you know how often my father gets sick? Never. Do you know how often he complains about pain? Never in my life, so if he went to the hospital - "

"Okay," said Naruto. "If you want to go that bad, I'll drive you."

"Naruto," Yahiko said impatiently.

"If it puts Sasuke at ease, let me drive him there. He'll see that all's fine, and we can come back," he suggested.

"I don't need either of you to decide this for me," Sasuke replied nastily, and pushing past them, grabbed the bundled up sheet around his waist and stormed out.

All Naruto could do was stare after him.

"I've never seen him like that," he said, glancing at Yahiko in surprise.

Yahiko sighed. "I'll text Itachi."

"No, let me talk to him, and I can at least convince him that he shouldn't be drivin' in this state."

"If you insist," Yahiko said uncertainly. "And here I told you he was so mature, yet now he's acting like a bratty kid. He should just do what his mother and Itachi told him to do."

Naruto turned on him. "It's not easy to consider the idea of losing a parent. Maybe you never knew your dad, but that's an indescribable feeling, to watch someone you love suffer and not be able to do anything about it."

"I may not have lost a parent," said Yahiko, "But I do know what losing a loved one feels like, Naruto. In this case, Sasuke's overreacting and, frankly, so are you by enabling his childish behavior."

"What do you know about Sasuke, huh?" Naruto asked angrily. "He chased after you for years and then you used him and threw him away for some girl. I would never do that to him. I would never let him cry or hurt him intentionally. If Sasuke wants to go to the goddam hospital to make sure his dad's not gonna die, then I'm gonna fuckin' take him to the hospital!"

He didn't know why he was so angry. It was stupid, and he knew his words hurt Yahiko, but none of this was 'not a big deal'. If it was a big deal to Sasuke, that's all that mattered. Naruto knew Yahiko had lost a close friend, but to lose a mother or father, that pain was incomparable. He rushed out of the room to follow after Sasuke and found him in the bedroom, dressed and texting on his phone.

"If you're texting Itachi, he might not even be at the hospital yet. They only left maybe 10 minutes ago."

"Mind your own business, Naruto," Sasuke snapped without looking up from his phone.

"What the hell, Sasuke? I'm on your side. And you're upset, so you shouldn't drive. Let me take you."

Sasuke, pocketing his phone in his back jean pocket, glared at him. "Don't act like you understand. This is my father we're talking about. My family."

"How can _I_ not understand? Why are you being such an asshole right now? I want to help you."

Sasuke closed the distance between them, stopping right in front of Naruto.

"I would die for my family. I will always put them first, even before you. Stay here with Yahiko, and try to keep your plots to yourself. I'm going to the hospital."

Sasuke, knocking into his shoulder on the way by, stopped in the doorway without looking back.

"Don't follow me."

He slammed the door behind him, leaving Naruto to wonder what the fuck had just happened. That wasn't the Sasuke he knew. His Sasuke would never say anything like that. Honestly, he was so much in shock that he didn't know what to do. Didn't even know if he should give chase or leave altogether. Not that he could go anywhere. It was still the middle of the night. He went to lay down on the bed, feeling a whole lot of absolutely...

Nothing.

* * *

When Sasuke arrived in the parking lot of the hospital, he kept trying to ring Itachi, but his brother wouldn't answer. His mind had been a blank on the way over here. Admittedly, he couldn't even remember the drive itself. The only thing he kept thinking about were worst possible scenarios, especially when Itachi wouldn't pick up his damn phone and tell him what floor they were on.

As he walked through the doors of the Emergency Room, he spotted a young nurse in light blue scrubs sitting behind a desk.

"My father and mother came in here not long ago," he told her. "I'm their son, Sasuke."

"I'm sorry, sweetie. What was the last name?"

"Uchiha," he replied, narrowing his eyes at the woman for not sensing his urgency. This is why he hated hospitals.

"Right, and you're their son?" She asked, clicking around on the keyboard. "If you want to take a seat over there, I can find out what room they've taken your dad, too. Okay?"

Sasuke's eyes stayed on her a little longer before he gave a reluctant nod and walked over to the sitting area. Just as he was about to take a seat, he received a text from Itachi letting him know they were in room 408. Without mentioning anything to the nurse, he followed the signs to the nearest elevator. When the doors opened, an old man in a wheelchair rolled out without greeting him. Sasuke stepped inside and punched the button for the fourth floor. In the back of his mind, he knew he'd taken his anger and fear out on Naruto, but his bigger concern right now was making sure his father was alright.

The sun was just beginning to rise, perking up the grayish clouds scattered in the horizon. Sasuke walked along the windowed corridor, unnerved by that sterile smell of disinfectant everywhere. When he reached room 408, he found the door partially open. He did knock first before going inside. Lying in the bed was his father, dressed in a hospital gown. His brother was in a chair by the window, while his mother was sitting on the edge of the bed near his father's feet. There were a few wires attached to his chest and an IV sticking out of his arm. A nurse was there, checking his vitals, and exchanging a few pleasantries with his mother.

"Sasuke," his father said, sounding surprised to see him, though Itachi had known he was on his way. "I thought you told him to stay home, Mikoto."

"I did, dear," replied Mikoto, looking worried as she came to him. "Sasuke, did you drive here all by yourself?"

"H-how are you, father?" He asked. Seeing his father in a hospital bed left him feeling strangely disoriented.

"Nothing to worry about," Fugaku answered. "Itachi was just going to return home. Your mother and I will be staying here for a few hours since they've decided to run an EKG."

"But... Itachi said you were coughing up blood?" Sasuke walked past his mother to stand at the side of his father's bed.

"I'm fine, Sasuke," his father repeated more sternly. "You should've stayed home as your mother asked. Make sure to take your brother with you. Did you leave Naruto by himself?"

Sasuke glanced at Itachi for a second. "...Not alone. Yahiko was there."

"I'm sure you worried him," said Mikoto, "Coming out here all alone. Why don't you let Naruto know everything's okay, hm?"

Sasuke gave no reply, only staring at the long, clear tube coming out of his father's arm.

"Sasuke," said Itachi. "Why don't we go get mother some coffee? And then we'll head home. We're only in the way here right now."

"I'd rather stay here," Sasuke told his father, almost meekly. "Just in case - "

Fugaku, reaching for Sasuke's wrist, squeezed it tight. "Sasuke. I'm fine."

Numbly, he nodded. "Yes, father."

Itachi got up from the chair, came around the bed, and took him by the arm. "Mother. Would you like anything else?"

"No," she said, smiling at the both of them. "Coffee's fine. Thank you, Itachi."

Itachi, guiding him out of the room, set his arm around Sasuke's shoulders.

"You should text Naruto. I imagine you leaving abruptly might have worried him. Yahiko mentioned in a text that the two of you had a fight before you left?"

"Figures," Sasuke muttered under his breath. "Is there no one capable of keeping their mouths shut?"

Itachi abruptly stopped them in the middle of the hall. "I've heard enough. You need to apologize to Yahiko and Naruto when we're home again. I don't understand what your problem is. The two of you were making progress last night. Why are you throwing that away?"

"Are you kidding?" He nearly shouted. "How is that more important than our father lying in a hospital bed? For all I knew, he was about to have a heart attack, and I wouldn't have been able to ever see him again. Maybe if everyone would stop trying to decide what's best for me, I wouldn't feel like I had to take matters into my own hands."

"If we weren't in public right now, I'd teach you a lesson. You will apologize to them."

"I won't," he argued. "Do you think after what just happened with father he'd be able to take hearing the fact that his son is gay? That, all along, I've been fucking around with Naruto under his nose, and now we're thinking about dating?"

"Hush, Sasuke," Itachi snapped. "Keep your voice down."

"Family comes first," he insisted. "Naruto will just have to understand that. I'm not changing my mind."

"You never had any intention of coming out, did you?" Itachi asked, narrowing his eyes. "Don't use this as an excuse to push him away."

"You don't know what you're talking about." Sasuke pulled his arm out of his brother's grasp. "I'm going back to the room."

Sasuke started to go, but Itachi grabbed him roughly again.

"Don't fuck this up," Itachi told him. "Or it might be the last thing you regret."

"I'm tired of you deciding what's right for me," Sasuke argued. "I'll decide what I want. Not you. Not Naruto."

Clicking his tongue in disgust, Itachi let him go. "Fine. Do as you please."

Itachi went one way, and Sasuke went the other.

* * *

Obviously Naruto wasn't going back to sleep. He lay across Sasuke's bed, staring up the ceiling. He'd lost track of time, but since the birds could be heard outside chirping, clearly the sun must have risen. For a while, Naruto considered getting up to apologize to Yahiko for saying what he did, but his body wouldn't move. It felt heavy and strange, and his chest hurt a lot. He was worried mostly, because he hadn't heard from Sasuke to know whether Fugaku was okay.

Some more time went by, and he thought he heard the sound of the garage door. He wondered if it was Sasuke or Itachi. Minutes later he had his answer once the bedroom door opened.

Sasuke came in without saying a word, and Naruto watched as he took off his jacket and hung it in the closet. He stood with his back to Naruto for some time.

"We should talk," Sasuke said eventually.

It took effort, but Naruto managed to drag himself up in the bed. He wrapped his arms around his knees. "First, shouldn't you let me know that your dad's okay? You could've at least texted me."

"He and mother are staying at the hospital. They might keep him overnight," Sasuke replied, finally turning around to face him.

It was a Sasuke he didn't recognize. He looked angry. But Naruto didn't know if it was directed at him or something happened at the hospital.

"You okay?" Naruto asked.

"I'm fine."

He didn't believe that for a second, but the precarious tension between them kept him from arguing.

"Okay," he said. "What did you wanna talk about?"

Sasuke didn't say anything, though. In fact, he just stood there and stared at him for so long, Naruto wondered if he'd even heard his question.

"Sasuke - "

"Naruto."

Sasuke set his hand on the desk chair and, for whatever reason, immediately pulled it away again. Naruto didn't know why that hurt, other than it was as if Sasuke suddenly remembered what they'd done in that chair only hours earlier.

"This," said Sasuke, gesturing at him. "You and me. It's not going to work."

"W-what are you talking about?" Naruto dropped his arms to the side and crossed his legs beneath him. "Let's at least talk about this. Where is this comin' from?"

"I told you dating would be difficult. My father's under enough stress to put a hole in his stomach, so I have no intention of telling him about my preferences."

Naruto jumped off the bed and got to his feet. "I told you that I wasn't givin' you an ultimatum of any kind."

Sasuke didn't so much as flinch despite Naruto being in his face.

"It's not up to you."

"I don't understand," said Naruto. "I'm not askin' you for anything, Sasuke."

"Think about it, Naruto. You and I... whatever's between us, it tends to bring out the worst in us. We can't be together. There's no point. I admit, the thought of you with anyone else..."

"I'm not gonna get with anyone else now that I know how I feel about you," he replied, his voice shaking because he just knew... he just knew that nothing he said right now would get through to Sasuke. He didn't even know how he knew.

"But, I can't. I can't be with you. So, I'm saying... you don't owe me anything. I can't date you. I can't - " His eyes searched Naruto's face, and there was a brief moment of conflict in his gaze before his features hardened again. "You're not even interested in men."

"I don't have to be interested in men to know how I feel about you. Why are you sayin' all this shit you don't mean to me? Yeah, havin' your dad go to the hospital is a scary thing, but you don't need to push me away - "

Sasuke's scowl deepened. "Are you trying to analyze me? Trying to tell me what I should do? That my way of thinking is wrong? I'm so tired of everyone telling me what I should be doing!"

"No." He was starting to get pissed off because Sasuke wasn't listening. "Did I say anything like that? You're the one deciding all of these things on your own. You were sayin' the exact opposite only a few hours ago. I know you care about me so stop trying to back out of it!"

"I do care." Sasuke's eyebrows lifted. "But I care more about my family. If I have to choose, I choose them."

"...Why do you have to choose?" Naruto's eyes started to sting. "Why are you - "

"I'm sorry."

"Sasuke," he said. "Don't... don't say you're sorry like it's final. You're only upset - "

"No. I can't give you what you want. Even if I could... all I do is hurt you. I might do it again, even if we were together."

"So your solution is to give up without even trying?" Naruto asked.

Sasuke shrugged, staring at him with a cold expression he didn't recognize. "If that's what you want to believe."

"I don't understand you."

"If that's true," Sasuke said to him, "All the more reason for us to put an end to this. We're attracted to each other, but... so what? It won't last. You'll go to Illinois. I'll stay here. Maybe you'll find a pretty little girlfriend who'll fawn all over you like the other girls you've dated. It'll be just what people expect of you. She won't say cruel things to you. She won't manipulate you like I can. She'll," Sasuke bit his lip, "Make you want to be a better person."

" _Sasuke_ ," he growled, grabbing him by the collar of his shirt. The first tear rolled down his cheek. "You don't mean any of that! If you want space, or time to _think_ \- "

"No," Sasuke said so calmly that it utterly broke his heart. "If you really think about it, you'll come to understand that it's for the best, too. This way you won't have to wait on me."

"So, I can't tell you what to do, but you can decide somethin' that affects me so easily? What about my feelings? Don't I have a say?"

Sasuke grabbed his wrist, trying to get him to let go. "You'll get over me. It's only an infatuation."

"Fucking say that again, and I'll punch you in the face," he growled, pulling Sasuke closer.

"If it makes you feel better. Go ahead."

"You're a fucking asshole, Sasuke!"

But Sasuke said nothing.

"Tch." Naruto pushed him away. "You're not even worth it. You're only being a coward, and I don't know why I'm surprised. I can probably catch the first bus if I take off now." He began to grab his clothes from off of the floor and stuffed them inside his backpack. "You really need to think about what the fuck you want, and then get back to me when you pull your head out of your ass."

Sasuke remained mute, even as Naruto pulled on a hooded sweatshirt and checked around to make sure he had everything. His feelings for Sasuke hadn't changed, and he sure as hell wasn't giving up, but Sasuke was in one of his fucked up moods. If Naruto stayed any longer, they were definitely going to start fighting for real. He tried to tell himself it was just the shock of his dad going to the hospital, but somewhere deep down, he knew it wasn't only that. There must've been doubts in Sasuke's mind this whole time. If it was sex, then Sasuke was all about it, but when it actually came to opening up and trusting someone - Sasuke was a fucking coward. It's not as if Naruto wasn't aware of what could happen with his family if he came out. He knew that! He wasn't trying to force Sasuke to do anything. But they could've at least figured it out together. Sasuke wouldn't even give them a chance without bailing. How was he supposed to forgive him for that?

"I hope you enjoy that fucking video," Naruto muttered as he opened the door and slammed it like Sasuke had done earlier.

He was going to leave without saying anything to anybody else, when he heard Itachi and Yahiko's voices coming from the kitchen. He wouldn't be able to make it out the door without those two noticing. Still, he went over by the front door to grab his shoes and slip them on. Naruto attempted to get his emotions under control before he said his goodbyes. He hadn't even apologized to Yahiko. Taking in a deep breath, he walked over to the kitchen doorway.

"Naruto," said Itachi, noticing his backpack. "Where are you going?"

"Home." He forced a smile. "I'm, uh, gonna catch the first bus to downtown."

"Are you... okay?" Yahiko asked.

Both men were staring at him as if he were about to break.

"Yeah, uh. Sasuke and I had a little fight, but it's all good. He's just stressed is all."

"Naruto, I'll go talk to him - " Itachi started to say.

Naruto held up a hand. "Nah. It's... fine. It's... um."

His stupid body betrayed him as the tears started streaming down his cheeks.

"Listen, Yahiko. I'm uh," he mumbled unintelligibly, "Really sorry about what I said earlier..."

Again, Itachi took a step toward him, but Naruto - his hand still up - took a step back.

"Really, I'm good. I'll talk to you later, Itachi. Tell your dad I hope he feels better. He'll be okay? Right?"

"He'll be okay," Itachi said softly, looking at him so pitiably.

Naruto felt like such a dumbass. "Okay. Bye then."

Before he really made a fool out of himself, Naruto ran out of the house as fast as he could, the front door banging shut behind him. He was so embarrassed!

He continued running down the length of the Uchihas' driveway, past the other big houses and toward the main road. After that, he'd have to walk another quarter mile before he reached the bus stop. Why had Sasuke changed so much in such a short amount of time? They'd fought before, but never had Sasuke said such intentionally cruel things. Even after what happened a month ago, Naruto could at least understand how Sasuke felt at the time. He'd manipulated Naruto, but if their positions had been reversed, if Sasuke was the one dating someone else - Naruto would be stupidly jealous and do all kinds of irrational things, too.

This, though... this was something he couldn't comprehend. Sasuke... the look on his face. It was cold and distant, like they were back to being nothing more than strangers. It was just, in his heart, he had this strange premonition things between them would never be the same. And being shut out like that... Naruto held a hand to his chest. It hurt. Like a betrayal. Like he'd lost something important that he could never get back. No amount of crying or begging or threatening would be able to change Sasuke's mind. He was stupid to have believed this would work out like all those dumb happy endings that Hollywood liked to shove down everyone's throats.

When he came to the bus stop, he took a seat on the bench and pulled up his hood since it was so fucking cold. Not to mention, he didn't want anyone to see him crying.

It was weird, this feeling. The emptiness. Just thinking that Sasuke no longer wanted to have anything to do with him made him feel so fucking, utterly _alone_.


	9. Interlude 1: Main Coffee Naruto & Sasuke

On a Sunday morning, Naruto woke up with the strangest feeling of heaviness in his chest. He remembered having a dream and feeling like it was all very real. He lay there a moment, trying to recall bits and pieces as if reconstructing a broken piece of glass. Sasuke lay next to him, facing toward Naruto but on his stomach, one hand reaching out far enough to almost touch Naruto's elbow. That felt familiar, too. Sasuke had been in his dream, but, looking at him now, it wasn't the Sasuke before him. The shoulders had been more narrow, his entire body less muscular, and he'd definitely been shorter.

Naruto observed the way Sasuke's bangs lay in a slant across his forehead, and, very tenderly, he brushed them to the side.

Sasuke's eyes opened.

"Hey," Naruto said.

"What are you doing to me while I'm asleep?" He found Naruto's hand on the bed between them and grabbed for it.

"If I told you that," Naruto replied, "It wouldn't be a surprise anymore."

The dark-haired man snorted. "I doubt it compares to what I've done to you."

"Mm." He held on to Sasuke's hand but gazed up at the ceiling. It sounded as if rain was beginning to beat against the bedroom window.

Sasuke snuggled closer, resting his head on Naruto's left shoulder and holding him about the waist.

"You seem sad."

"I do?" Naruto asked.

"Yeah. Tell me? Bad dream?"

"Maybe."

"Is it because you tried to search for spoilers for _The Walking Dead_ premiere last night?"

Naruto sighed. "We all know it's going to be Glenn, Sasuke. Just like in the graphic novels."

"I actually think it will be Glenn _and_ Abraham."

When Naruto didn't laugh, Sasuke raised his head to look at him.

"What's up, Naruto?"

"It's nothing. Just a dream I had. About you, I think."

"Me? A dream about me made you sad?" Sasuke sat up all the way, crossing his legs beneath him. They were both sleeping in the buff, so Sasuke draped the sheet across his lap for modesty purposes.

"I don't know why it ended up being sad," he replied carefully, biting at his lip. "Because we were in bed, just like this. Except I was lyin' on my side, and spoonin' you from behind."

Sasuke moved his elbows to his knees, cradling his chin in his folded hands as he waited patiently for Naruto to continue.

Naruto gazed at him and felt another strange pang of loneliness that he didn't quite understand. "Maybe it wasn't you?"

His boyfriend raised an eyebrow. "You were in bed with someone who wasn't me?"

"No, I mean I think it was you, but… it wasn't you."

"Please tell me it wasn't my brother," Sasuke muttered and picked up his pillow to set on top of his lap. He folded his arms over it while brushing a thumb across the fabric.

"No. It wasn't your brother." He did actually grin this time. "It was _your_ hair, definitely. I'd recognize it anywhere, though it was shorter than you wear it now, choppier."

"Hmm."

"Your build was different, too. Like… oh _God_ , maybe you were _younger_?"

Sasuke smirked. "You dreamt of a younger me? Why, Naruto. I didn't know you had such fetishes."

Naruto glared. "Hey, you even smelled the same, okay? Besides, it was only a dream."

"But you haven't explained what made you sad. If you don't tell me, how can I fix it?" Sasuke leaned over and reached for the necklace Naruto happened to be wearing.

Naruto grabbed for Sasuke's hand and held it before lowering it to his chest. He played with Sasuke's fingers for a while, folding them together or curling his own forefinger around Sasuke's. Sasuke, being a competitive bastard, turned it into an impromptu thumb war.

"You can't fix everything," Naruto murmured, watching while Sasuke kept trying to pin his thumb.

"I can. If you tell me what it is, I can."

He smiled a bit. "I dunno, honestly. It was you and me in bed. Or, I was just gettin' into bed with you after takin' a shower, and I cuddled up against you with the intent of givin' you a handjob - "

"Wait, you gave younger dream!me a handjob?"

Naruto took advantage of his surprise to give Sasuke's thumb a final pin down; Sasuke noticed and frowned.

"You cheated."

"I didn't. I just took advantage of my opponent being distracted."

"Well, did this younger me say anything to make you sad? Do I need beat my younger self up?"

"No. I think… you were kinda cute, really."

"Me? I was far from cute in my younger days. How young are we talking exactly? Should I report you to the authorities?"

Naruto scoffed. "You were… maybe legal. You had to be close to 18… but… probably younger. Sorry."

"You diddled me."

"I only _half_ way diddled you. Maybe. Besides, you seemed to like it… although you were sayin' somethin' about boundaries."

"Boundaries?" Sasuke repeated.

"I dunno what you meant by that. But when I started to give you a reacharound, you certainly weren't complainin'."

Sasuke, letting go of Naruto's hand, let his own hand wander across Naruto's stomach, where he tracked his palm lightly across the tanned skin until sliding it beneath the sheet.

"I would never complain about a reacharound from you," Sasuke said while placing kisses to his chest and, rolling over, even to the base of his neck.

"Maybe the dream itself wasn't very sad, but… when I woke up I felt sad."

"Because you didn't get to finish molesting my teenage self?"

"That, too." He smiled at first, but then the corners of his mouth turned downward. "It's a foreboding feeling."

"You shouldn't have binge-watched _Stranger Things_ like that. Did the demogorgon come along and drag you to the Upside Down?"

"It's not funny. It's a sad feeling in my chest. Heavy… like… somethin' bad's gonna happen. To you or me, or both of us."

"Naruto," said Sasuke, "It's only a dream."

"Well, whatever dream world you and I are in, I don't want us to suffer or anything."

Sasuke, instead of trying to molest Naruto further, guided his hand up the length of Naruto's torso. A finger traced an imaginary path across the lines of his abdominal muscles, up the center of his chest, and then just underneath the curve of his collarbone. He squeezed Naruto's shoulder.

"I don't want you talking to younger me," Sasuke said ominously.

"Huh?" He tried to look him in the face, but all he could see was dark hair.

"I don't know what he might say to you."

"What are you talkin' about, Sasuke?" He attempted to sit up, but Sasuke's arm kept him down.

"I was an asshole back then. I told you that once. That you wouldn't have liked who I was back then…"

"Yeah, and I also told you that no matter who you think you are or were, there's no other you but you. Plus, you still had parents, didn't you? Could you have been that much of an emo child before all of that dead parent angst?"

"Harsh," said Sasuke.

"Hey, I'm in that club, too."

"No. You still have a parent."

"Sorry, Sasuke. I didn't mean anything by it."

Sasuke nodded against him and then rolled the other way so that he was on his back. Naruto watched him, feeling guilty, before he rolled onto his side, head supported by his left hand. He placed his hand on Sasuke's taut stomach.

"Sasuke?"

"It's nothing. Only thinking about what I was like back then… even before my parents passed away… things weren't always easy."

"Wanna… talk about it?"

Sasuke gave him a rather droll look, but Naruto smiled nonetheless.

"You never tell me stories about you in high school," he said. "You hear that stuff about me from Kiba all the time."

"Sorry I don't have any high school friends that you can talk to. I'm sure there's a reason for that." Sasuke shut his eyes. "I don't think I've stayed in touch with anyone from that time."

"Yeah, I guess you and that Sai-guy must not have been very close."

Sasuke shook his head. "No. Definitely not. I think it was… looking back, I…"

Naruto patiently waited, his heart aching as Sasuke struggled to find his words - something he did so rarely.

"We don't have to talk about this."

"I don't mind," Sasuke told him quietly. "It's just painful at times. To think about my relationship with my father. Before I came out versus after. He was always so proud of me before then, and when I finally gathered the courage to tell him - "

Naruto shifted closer, so that he could rest his head on Sasuke's shoulder and tuck up against his side.

"It was like nothing was ever going to be the same between us after that," Sasuke finished.

Naruto could hear the sound of his quickening heartbeat. "He kicked you out, right?"

"It's not that he kicked me out," Sasuke explained, "It's…"

"Sasuke, really. You don't have to talk about this."

"He wouldn't talk to me, he wouldn't even look at me or acknowledge me. It was like I was invisible. Mother didn't want to go against him. She tried to defend me, and, Itachi was away at school, so… I had to find a place to crash for a while. Eventually, father did talk to me, but it was always strained. After the funeral, I regretted telling him. I should've dealt with it. I could've lived my life without letting him know that side of myself - "

"Sasuke," Naruto mumbled, throwing an arm across Sasuke's waist and holding him. He kissed the other man's pale skin, dragging his lips across until he was able to press them to Sasuke's throat.

"What would you have done?" He turned his head, looking at Naruto directly. "Naruto. In my place, what would you have done?"

"I don't know. I think… you did the right thing. Your father, even if he was surprised or upset at the time, wouldn't want you to have lived a lie. Even if he didn't understand, deep down, I think he would've been proud of you for bein' honest, and he would've wanted you to be happy."

A single tear fell from beneath Sasuke's closed eyelids. It broke Naruto's heart.

Gently, he cupped one of Sasuke's cheeks and kissed him on his chin, his jaw, cheek, eyelids, and forehead until Sasuke's arms began to wrap around him, pulling him down and - closer.

"I want to believe," Sasuke said in a slightly trembling voice, "That you and I met at the very moment we did because we were meant to. You're everything to me now, Naruto. Everything. My friend, my family - "

"Shh, Sasuke." Naruto kissed away the tears that kept falling. "Don't be sad. We're family. You have Itachi, and dad, and Kiba and Ino. We're all your family. You're not alone."

He held Sasuke tight while the other man buried his face into Naruto's neck and sobbed. All Naruto could do was gently stroke his back and occasionally comb fingers through his hair in an attempt to soothe him.

"It's all good, Sasuke," he whispered. "We met, and you're the best thing that's ever happened to me in all my life. The absolute best thing."

"I love you," Sasuke said brokenly. "I love you."

Naruto's eyes squeezed shut as he held Sasuke tighter. "I know. I love you, too. I'll always love you. Sasuke."


	10. Interlude 2: Sasuke, Itachi, and Yahiko

Sasuke remembered standing in the same place for 10, maybe 15 minutes before the sound of the front door slamming for a third time got him to snap out of his thoughts. He knew what he'd just done, but at the same time, he felt nothing. Hollow. Naruto had been right to yell at him and walk out. After all, Sasuke couldn't give him what he wanted. He hadn't been able to this entire time, and now, with his father being ill, it wasn't going to happen anytime soon either. He was angry, but he didn't know to whom to direct this anger. He was mad at himself, but he was also mad at everyone else. Even just standing here, it felt like there was a gaping hole in his chest.

He glanced at the bed he'd shared with Naruto. He thought about the things they'd said to one another last night. The way the physical aspect of their relationship had taken on so much more intensity. It was cruel, really. Everything he'd thought he'd wanted over the past nine months had been right within his grasp. Naruto seemed to think he had a choice in the matter, but there was none as far as he could tell, so it was best to make it clear now. Why lead Naruto on? Why give him hope when there was none?

When he heard a knock at his bedroom door, he tensed. Itachi barged in without waiting for his response, and, not surprisingly, Yahiko followed behind. They must've gone after Naruto. Both were wet from the rain. Sasuke kept his expression impassive as he watched them, his defenses already up and on high-alert.

"If you're here to lecture me," he said flatly, "Don't bother."

"Naruto left." Itachi crossed his arms. "He seemed very upset."

"And?"

"Sasuke," Yahiko said, adopting a much more lighter tone than his brother. "There's no reason for you to push Naruto away like this."

"What do _you_ know?" He replied. "I was honest. I let him know as long as father is like this, I have no intention of coming out. That's what Naruto wants me to do, isn't it? What you both think I should do?"

Itachi took a step forward, the look he wore menacing and cold. It frustrated him even more that his own brother was obviously taking Naruto's side.

"So, you want to play the villain, do you?" Itachi asked. "You think by pushing him away you're helping him to understand your feelings? Naruto is your friend. More than that, he loves you. When did our parents raise you to take those kinds of feelings for granted? Tell me."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "What do _you_ know of self-sacrifice, huh? You were happy to get out from under father's thumb by going off to college. I've put everything aside to please him, but that's my choice. There's no merit in coming out right now except all of you will apparently be able to breathe a sigh of relief. That you think it's alright for our family to be shaken right now makes me wonder just how truly _selfish_ you've grown, Itachi."

"Stop being such a foolish, spoiled little brat," Itachi said, looking dangerous as he grabbed Sasuke by the collar and backed him up until he collided with the wall. "You're the one who's selfish and a _coward_. If you never had the intention of being a man and answering Naruto's feelings, you shouldn't have made him believe that you felt the same."

"Itachi," said Yahiko, placing a hand on his shoulder.

Itachi ignored him. "Sasuke. What will you do? Will you always run? Will you cling to this pitiful life you've made for yourself, pretending that it's for the sake of our father, our family, when the truth is that you're afraid? You think Naruto doesn't know? Naruto's never given up on you, and yet you've treated him like nothing more than trash. You don't deserve him."

"You think I don't know that?" He replied in a low voice, grasping his brother's wrist like a vice. "Do you think I scared him off because I think I _deserve_ someone like him? He has no idea what I'm capable of, and neither do you. You think you know me," he spared Yahiko a brief glance and even smirked, "But you have no idea who I am. You think I'm your innocent little brother, but I'm not. I wouldn't know what to do with someone as idiotic and pure as Naruto. He says he'd have no problem dating another boy, but it's because he's oblivious about how people treat each other in this world."

"And so," Itachi's fingers started to wrap around the base of his throat, "You sought to teach him such a lesson? That even those you trust the most will hurt you on a whim?"

" _Yes!_ " Sasuke shouted in his face. "He'll thank me for it later. When he's with someone who can make him happy, someone who's willing to go as far for him as he's willing to go for others!"

"What you're saying doesn't make sense," Yahiko cut in. "If you believe Naruto would go that far for the person he loves, if he's willing to forgo the fact that he's normally attracted to women to be with you, then why wouldn't you have faith that he'd wait for you?"

"I don't want him to wait!" Sasuke snapped. "Why should he have to wait? I don't even want that kind of burden on my mind. I don't... I don't want to carry the weight of his unrealistic expectations on my shoulders! It's unfair. Even if he doesn't ask me, I know he expects it of me. To come to the right decision. What _he_ thinks is right. But what about me? What if I just want to be left alone? Why do _I_ always have to do what everyone tells me to do? I was fine before he came along, and I'll be fine without him now!"

Itachi suddenly let go of him. "I've never been so disappointed in you as I am right now. You _are_ right. You don't deserve him."

Stunned, Sasuke's gaze fell to the floor, Itachi's words echoing in his brain. Without another word, his brother turned his back on him and left.

Even more than the earlier look of hurt and rejection on Naruto's face, the idea of his brother being disappointed in him was a soul-crushing blow. But he was so _tired_ of everyone deciding what was best for him, manipulating him behind the scenes in order to guide Sasuke toward the course they wanted him to follow. But, even if his path led somewhere dark from now on, it was his path to choose; not theirs.

"Sasuke," said Yahiko. "He doesn't mean that. He's only upset you're denying yourself something you deserve. Even in this situation, it's okay to be happy. I know Naruto was struggling to come to terms with his feelings last night because he didn't know what they were. That kid cares about you. Don't punish him for that."

"Shut _up_." He pinned Yahiko with an accusing glare. "You have no right to talk to me about happiness or what I _deserve_. When did you ever care about my feelings? Do you know how it felt? To be fucked by you and discarded? Now you want to lecture _me_ about my relationship with Naruto as if you've always looked out for my best interests?"

Yahiko's expression changed completely. "Would you like me to say I regret it? What happened between you and me? Is that what you want to hear?"

Sasuke smirked. "What? You didn't enjoy fucking your best friend's little brother?"

He felt the sting of Yahiko's backhand before he even had the chance to register it happened.

"Fucking grow up already, Sasuke," Yahiko yelled. "Stop blaming everyone else for your fuck-ups. Maybe if you were half the man your brother is, you'd have Naruto by your side right now, but as you are, you deserve to be alone. You deserve to wallow in your own misery and self-pity, but just know that, if you keep pushing everyone away, there won't be anyone left, and you'll have nobody to blame but yourself."

With that, Yahiko walked out, slamming the door behind him hard enough to knock one of the few frames Sasuke had hanging on the wall.

He stared numbly at it while rubbing at his cheek. Finally, he went over and picked it up from off of the floor. In it, he was standing next to his brother and their parents on the day of Itachi's high school graduation. His parents looked so proud. He was smiling, too. They appeared the perfect family. But now there was a crack in the glass.

Sasuke carried it over to the desk and sat down in the chair. He stared at the photo for some time while dragging his finger over the crack.

What would happen next? By now, Naruto should've changed his mind about him. Maybe he'd even give up. Maybe they weren't even friends anymore. Sasuke should put an end to all of these naive fantasies he'd been having since he met Naruto. It was Naruto's fault anyway. He'd made Sasuke believe that, just for a moment, he deserved something more. That everything can work out if one simply has the will to change things, even if they seem completely out of anyone's means to control.

Yet, Sasuke was the selfish one for having a realistic outlook on the situation? For cutting ties with Naruto before it got even more complicated?

Well, if that's how everyone wanted to see it, then so be it.


	11. Interlude 3: Naruto & Minato

By the time Naruto made it to the apartment, he was soaked to the bone and shivering. The rain had started while waiting for the bus and hadn't stopped since. It didn't help that he'd had way too much time to think on the 30-minute journey home. He should've stayed and punched Sasuke in the face, smack a little sense into him. But, how could Naruto pressure him into doing something he didn't want? Thinking back, Sasuke hadn't even returned the sentiment even after Naruto basically spilled his guts. In his mind, he'd thought Sasuke might have similar feelings for him, but maybe he'd simply been caught up in the moment.

It would've been nice, though, had Sasuke texted him at least once to apologize. Instead, he had several texts from Itachi asking if he was okay. Obviously he'd fallen for the wrong Uchiha brother. That look on Sasuke's face... it was going to haunt him for a long time. Even if Sasuke was scared or shocked about his dad going to the hospital, didn't he take it way too far? Naruto knew him well enough to get that he'd regret it in the long run, but Sasuke could also be very stubborn.

Plus, Sasuke really hurt him. After everything they've been through together, the fact that he couldn't even give Naruto a proper explanation should've been unforgivable. All he did was kick him out the door. The more he thought about it, the madder he became. But what could he do? He still loved Sasuke. It's not like Sasuke being an asshole suddenly made all of those feelings disappear, but it sure as hell made him question whether Sasuke would even be mature enough to handle a relationship. Hell, he already had that answer. It must've been nice having an excuse to get out of it instead of just telling Naruto he didn't feel the same. He didn't have to go so fucking far! He didn't have to make Naruto feel so small. He'd done nothing wrong here!

As he walked into the lobby, his wet sneakers squeaked all over the floor. Unfortunately, there were a couple of neighbors he knew waiting by the elevator, and he was forced to make small talk, although all they could do was comment about how he was going to catch a cold. When they reached his floor, he said his goodbyes.

The door to the apartment was unlocked, so he knew his dad was home from his trip to Portland. He kind of wanted to go hide in his room for a while or, better yet, run a hot shower and stay in there for a good hour. He slipped his shoes off and set them neatly by the mat - a habit from Sasuke badgering him about it all the time. He also removed his coat and set it on the backs of one of the dining room chairs so that it could dry.

On his way down the hall, he saw the light on in his dad's room.

"Naruto, is that you?" He called. "Hey, come here a sec, will you? I'm trying to find us some airline tickets to O'Hare."

Naruto hovered next to his own bedroom door. He wanted to tell his dad that he was tired and didn't have time, but he couldn't get the words to come out. Instead, he dropped his backpack off and then walked the rest of the way down the hall. His father, who was sitting at his computer desk, looked up with a smile that quickly changed into a frown.

"Naruto, you're soaked!"

"Yeah," he said, running a hand through his hair, "It's rainin' really hard out there."

"Why didn't Sasuke bring you home? Actually, I wasn't expecting you until dinner time."

He chewed his lip. "Uh, I took the bus home. They had a family emergency... thing. Fugaku went to the hospital."

"He did?" Minato looked very concerned. "What happened?"

"An ulcer, they think. He's still there. I dunno. Itachi didn't seem overly worried but Sasuke freaked out a bit."

"Did he?" Minato got up from the chair and came over to him. He studied Naruto's face. "Are you okay? Did it shock you that he had to go to the hospital?"

"Er." Naruto glanced away because it was starting to hurt all over again. "I mean, yeah, but..."

"But?" Minato pried.

"D-dad," he said, the corners of his mouth trembling.

"Naruto." Minato put a hand on his shoulder. "What's wrong? If you don't tell me, I don't know how to help."

He did want to tell his father all about it, his fight with Sasuke, these feelings that he had for his best friend, the fact he'd just been rejected hardcore in the most hideous way possible - but.

"It's okay," said Minato as he threw his arms around Naruto and held him. "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to. Is it because of your mother?"

Naruto shook his head as he buried his face into his dad's shoulder.

"Did you and Sasuke have a fight?" He asked, petting the back of Naruto's head.

Naruto nodded and clutched at the back of his dad's shirt.

"Maybe his father going to the hospital shocked him. Do you think?"

"M-maybe," he replied.

"If it's Sasuke, he'll apologize to you as soon as you two see each other at school tomorrow."

"I don't know if he will. He was... And I - . _Dad_." Embarrassingly, Naruto started to cry for who knows how long, but the entire time, his dad continued to hug him and say soothing things like he was a little kid who'd scratched his knee falling off a bike.

After five minutes, his dad eventually pushed him off to look at him. He swept Naruto's bangs to the side.

"How can Sasuke treat such a handsome boy like this, hm?"

"What...?"

But Minato only smiled. "First thing's first, you need to get out of these wet clothes. Go take a nice hot shower. We'll order something from your favorite pizza place, watch a movie or two, whatever you want to do."

"Really?" He wiped at his eyes. "I thought you were lookin' at airplane tickets."

"I am, but you need to notify the school first. When's your last day before Christmas vacation?"

"The 21st maybe? I'm not sure."

"Well, I think Jiraiya would be okay with you taking a couple of days off before then to visit your mom and say hi to your friends in Joliet."

"Are we really doin' that? I thought you had work."

"I've been putting in enough time lately. I think you and I should start spending more time together. Don't you?"

"Sure."

Minato cuffed him on the back of the head. "What do you mean 'sure'?"

Naruto grinned. "I mean, yeah. It'd be good to go back home for a few days."

"By then, who knows, you and Sasuke will have made up. Friends fight sometimes. Your mother and I used to fight, too."

"You did?"

"Of course. All couples fight, but, looking back, those things shouldn't have been worth fighting over."

"Wait..." Naruto cocked his head. "Sasuke and I aren't a couple."

 _Well, we could've been, but he had to go and fuck it up because he's such a scaredy cat_.

"But Sasuke is very important and precious to you, isn't he?" Minato asked. "Usually he's such a polite, well-mannered boy. And so soft-spoken. It's hard to imagine the two of you getting into such a bad fight."

Naruto frowned and rubbed the back of his neck. "Maybe I didn't know him as well as I thought either. I guess everybody has their dark side, huh?"

"I suppose that's true. You were quite the delinquent growing up. The first week of school here, you got into a fight."

"Yeah, but I told you - "

Minato smiled. "I know. You were helping out a friend. You're a good kid, Naruto. I know I haven't been around very much this past year, but that's going to change soon. After the New Year, I should be traveling a lot less, so maybe you and I can schedule some camping trips. We can even invite Sasuke along. He's here enough that it already feels as though I adopted a second son at some point. You're like brothers."

"Brothers, huh?" Naruto took a few steps back as he removed his sweatshirt. "I'm gonna go take a shower."

"Okay, what kind of pizza do you want?"

"The usual," he replied as he headed toward the bathroom all while trying to shimmy out of his wet clothes.

Naruto threw them in the closet hamper and, because it was so cold, rushed to the shower to turn on the hot water. He shivered next to the glass doors until it was warm enough for him to step inside.

For whatever reason, he had a flashback to prom night when he'd passed out here on this floor and Sasuke picked him up and took care of him. That was real, right? That was the Sasuke he knew. He had more amazing memories of Sasuke than anything, but... what was this sudden change in his best friend about? Should Naruto give him space or approach him head-on? The latter was more his style, but maybe Sasuke really did feel under pressure. Naruto also didn't want to be his doormat either. Sasuke couldn't just treat him like shit every time he had a bad day. Of course, Naruto wanted to be there for him, but he also wanted an apology.

Still, it didn't make him worry any less.

Naruto grabbed the soap from off of the rack and began lathering himself up, half-thinking about the cruel words Sasuke said to him this morning, while the other part of his brain was thinking about everything that happened prior. He couldn't deny it had been really good. It had felt amazing to confess to Sasuke and, for just a little while, to believe that it was mutual. He'd been dating girls for years now, but not very seriously. It seemed the thing a boy his age should do, but if this is how relationships could be when you really liked the other person... if that's how sex could be like... but, in a way, he was glad that they hadn't taken it that far last night because, for some reason, he thought Sasuke would've used that against him, too, somehow.

It wasn't their first fight, but it was definitely their worst.

Maybe Sasuke would come to him, head bowed, and prostrate himself at his feet tomorrow. That made him smile. Usually it didn't take very long for Sasuke to feel guilty about the shit he pulled.

Yet, as Naruto held his face up to the spray of water, there was a part of him that was afraid this may be different. This wasn't just a little fight, but was a rift that had come between them.

It made him wonder... if he'd only kept his feelings to himself, would things have come to this? Sasuke wouldn't have felt pressured and instead of freaking out on Naruto about his father going to the hospital, maybe he would've asked for his help. He would've wanted Naruto by his side while going through something like that... it hurt knowing that these feelings he had for Sasuke were, apparently, nothing more than a burden to him. And the last thing he wanted was to be a burden to the people whom he loved.

* * *

a/n: Because it's so long, the continuation of Dream has been posted as its own story, so see "Dream: Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year?" Any further sidefics after Dream Xmas (IF I choose to write any) will go under a Sasuke's Dream Sidefics II, just like with Coffee. The universe could go all the way up to a "Dream Seattle" IF I write it all, which is unlikely, so there is no "end" point, just a point when I'll stop writing it.


End file.
